Overview
- Tom Barrack said in a Friday interview that Israel “still” occupies the Golan Heights, a comment that prompted criticism for seeming to contradict President Trump’s 2019 recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the territory.
- Barrack issued a public clarification on Sunday saying his words described the Golan’s historical contestation and that “United States policy on the Golan was set by President Trump in 2019 and is unchanged.”
- The remark and clarification drew immediate pushback from U.S. and Israeli figures, including Republican Sen. Rick Scott and Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz, who defended Trump’s policy and Israel’s recent security actions.
- In the same interview Barrack criticized Israeli strikes on the Abu Duhur airbase in northern Syria and stressed he was not proposing talks with Hezbollah, calling it a U.S. designated terrorist group and saying Washington does not negotiate with it.
- The episode highlights how mixed messages from senior envoys can complicate diplomacy over Syria, Lebanon and Israel, in a region already tense after recent Israeli strikes, disputes over Turkish activity in Syria, and shifting recognitions of the Golan.