The Times of Israel is liveblogging Saturday’s events as they happen.
Israel and Syria have agreed to ceasefire, announces US envoy
US Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack announces that Israel and Syria have agreed to a ceasefire.
On Wednesday, Israel launched airstrikes in Damascus, while also hitting government forces in the south, demanding they withdraw and saying that Israel aimed to protect Syrian Druze — part of a small but influential minority that also has followers in Lebanon and Israel.
Barrack, who also serves as special envoy for Syria, writes in a post on X that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, with the support of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, agreed to a ceasefire “embraced” by Turkey, Jordan and other unidentified neighbors.
“We call upon Druze, Bedouins, and Sunnis to put down their weapons and together with other minorities build a new and united Syrian identity,” Barrack says without offering any further details about the ceasefire.
There is no immediate comment from the Prime Minister’s Office or the Syrian Presidency.
UAE denounces strike on Gaza church, urges safety of holy sites
The United Arab Emirates calls an Israeli airstrike on the Holy Family Church in Gaza a “blatant violation of international humanitarian law,” and urges the protection of holy sites.
Israel has said that the church was hit by a stray munition.
The UAE’s Foreign Ministry also warns in a statement “against the ongoing Israeli aggression and military escalation which threaten to further exacerbate the humanitarian catastrophe in the Strip.”
UAE Condemns Targeting of Church in Gaza and Reaffirms Importance of Protecting Holy Sites and Civilianshttps://t.co/7PVMc8yhWO pic.twitter.com/MS16U2DArQ
— MoFA وزارة الخارجية (@mofauae) July 18, 2025
Syrian president’s office says it will deploy force to end Bedouin-Druze clashes in southern region
Syrian authorities will deploy a dedicated force to end clashes and resolve conflict between factions from the Druze community and members of Bedouin tribes in southern Syria, in coordination with political and security measures aimed at restoring stability, the presidency says in a statement.