US congressman urges Israel to end Syria strikes

US Representative Joe Wilson on Monday urged Israel to end its airstrikes on Syria, telling Anadolu that the attacks "just shouldn't be done" while praising the Trump administration's opposition to the strikes on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.

Calls for halt to Israeli strikes

Wilson, a Republican from South Carolina who co-chairs the Congressional Caucus on US-Türkiye Relations and Turkish Americans, said he was "really grateful" that President Donald Trump's envoy to Syria, Tom Barrack, had expressed opposition to the Israeli military action. "I'm really grateful the president's envoy, Tom Barrack, has expressed opposition to the Israeli airstrikes, and it just shouldn't be done," Wilson said, referring to Barrack's August criticism of attacks on Syria's Abu al-Duhur Airbase as an "unnecessary escalation." Asked whether he was explicitly calling on the Israeli government to end the strikes, Wilson responded: "Absolutely."

Support for Syria and F-35 sale

Wilson praised Trump's leadership in supporting Syria at the request of Ankara and Riyadh, stating that giving Damascus "a chance" would benefit every country in the Middle East. The congressman also threw his support behind efforts to return Türkiye to the F-35 fighter jet program and remove sanctions imposed under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA). "I do. Yes, I do," Wilson said when asked if he backed selling F-35 jets to Ankara, adding that cooperation between Washington and Ankara would contribute to "peace through strength."

Historical context of alliance

Washington suspended Türkiye from the F-35 program in 2019 following its purchase of Russia's S-400 air defense system, citing risks to the stealth fighter and incompatibility with NATO systems. Several Turkish defense entities were subsequently sanctioned under CAATSA, though President Trump said in July during a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that he would "certainly" consider allowing the sale and wants to remove the penalties. Wilson noted that Washington and Ankara have cooperated since the Korean War, stating that the "liberation of Syria" — referring to the collapse of the Assad regime in late 2024 — would benefit the entire Middle East.