Israeli minister says war ‘inevitable’ after Syrian troops chant for Gaza
An Israeli government minister has hinted at a potential war with Syria, in response to footage of Syrian troops chanting slogans in support of Palestinians in Gaza.
A military parade took place on Monday in Damascus, among many other events, to mark the first anniversary of the fall of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad.
At one point during the parade, troops chanted: “Gaza, Gaza, Gaza, our slogan, night and day, bombing and ruin.
“We are coming for you, our enemy, coming, coming for you, even if you were a mountain of fire, I will make from my blood ammunition, and from your blood rivers.”
The parade was attended by Ahmed al-Sharaa, Syria’s interim president, and other senior Syrian officials.
New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch
Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters
Amichai Chikli, Israel’s minister of diaspora and combating antisemitism, on Tuesday shared a video of the chant posted on X by the far-right aggregator account Visegrad24.
Chikli quoted the post, writing: “War is inevitable.”
The specific chant has been heard in military parades before: it was used by fighters of Qassam Brigades - the armed wing of Hamas - in February last year.
War is inevitable https://t.co/K65CIkTR1r
— עמיחי שיקלי - Amichai Chikli (@AmichaiChikli) December 9, 2025
According to Enab Baladi, an independent Syrian media organisation, parts of the chant are also used by Algeria’s army during parades and training.
On Wednesday, Chikli posted a lengthy message on X, accusing Syria of “jihadist terror”.
“A full-blown Islamic jihadist caliphate now sits on Israel’s northern border,” he wrote.
“Israel will not sit idly by while it grows stronger. The lessons of October 7th must be applied: Do not let the beast become an untouchable monster.”
He did not elaborate further on what Israeli action would look like.
Israel’s Army Radio, citing anonymous security officials, reported that the defence establishment, including senior officials, had met to discuss the footage.
“We deal with the Syrian regime with a doctrine of complete suspicion. We monitor it with mistrust. Its nature is extreme and jihadist, and we cannot afford to misread it,” an official told the radio station.
'Israel exporting crises'
Israel, which has already occupied Syria’s Golan Heights in contravention of international law since 1967, expanded its territory in southern Syria following the fall of Assad’s government.
In December 2024, it seized all of a UN-patrolled buffer zone which had previously separated Israeli and Syrian forces in the Golan Heights.
Speaking at an international conference in Doha over the weekend, Sharaa said that Israel was “exporting crises” to other countries to divert attention from “horrifying massacres” it is committing in Gaza.
“Israel responded to Syria with extreme violence, launching more than 1,000 air strikes and carrying out 400 incursions into its territory,” he said, referring to attacks since 8 December 2024.
“The latest of these attacks was the massacre it committed in the town of Beit Jinn in the Damascus countryside.”
He added that Syria was working with other countries to pressure Israel to withdraw from areas it has occupied over the past 12 months.
Last week, US President Donald Trump warned Israel not to interfere with Syria's “evolution” after the deadly raid in Beit Jinn that killed at least 13 people.
The villagers of Beit Jinn, which sits just 50km southwest of Damascus, tried to repel the Israeli attack, Syrian media reported. Israeli warplanes launched air strikes to prevent the troops from being "encircled", Syrian media reported.
The Israeli military said that six of its soldiers were wounded, three of them seriously.
“The United States is very satisfied with the results displayed, through hard work and determination, in the country of Syria,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“It is very important that Israel maintain a strong and true dialogue with Syria and that nothing takes place that will interfere with Syria's evolution into a prosperous state.”
Middle East Eye delivers independent and unrivalled coverage and analysis of the Middle East, North Africa and beyond. To learn more about republishing this content and the associated fees, please fill out this form. More about MEE can be found here.
