US envoy Tom Barrack retracts comment that Syria’s Golan is occupied

What the report says

US Ambassador to Turkiye Tom Barrack has retracted a recent remark that appeared to describe Syria’s Golan Heights as occupied territory, reaffirming instead that Washington’s policy remains the same as set by President Donald Trump in 2019. In a statement to The Associated Press on Sunday, Barrack said the United States position on the Golan was unchanged, aligning with Trump’s recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the area.

Al Jazeera reported that Barrack’s clarification followed criticism over comments he made in an interview with podcaster Mario Nawfal, where he said Israel occupied the Golan “against all of the international order.” That language was seen by pro-Israel advocates and several US figures as inconsistent with official US policy. Senator Rick Scott and far-right commentator Laura Loomer were among those who publicly objected to Barrack’s earlier wording.

The Golan Heights, a strategic plateau in southern Syria, was captured by Israel in the 1967 war and annexed in 1981. Most of the international community has long viewed the territory as occupied Syrian land, while the US under Trump became the first country to recognize Israel’s claim. The issue matters because it touches on a long-running territorial dispute and on broader questions of international law, sovereignty and the limits of changing borders by force.

Barrack’s remarks also came amid wider tensions involving Syria, Israel and Turkey, after he separately criticized Israeli strikes on a Syrian airbase.