Current sectionMiddle East NewsSyria NewsGuterres is also set to visit the UN peacekeeping force in the Golan Heights, where tensions have risen since Assad's fall. 'What is happening in the region is totally unacceptable,' he saidShare to FacebookShare to XArticle printing is available to subscribers onlyPrint in a simple, ad-free formatSubscribeComments: Zen reading is available to subscribers onlyAd-free and in a comfortable reading formatSubscribeLiza Rozovsky, Reutersand The Associated Press11:44 PM • July 25 2026 IDTUnited Nations Secretary-General António Guterres arrived in Damascus on Saturday for the first visit by a UN chief to Syria since 2009, urging the international community to help end violations of Syrian sovereignty and criticizing Israel's military presence in the country's south.Loading...Click the alert icon to follow topics:SyriaUnited NationsBashar AssadAhmad al-SharaaCommentsLoading...In the NewsIn the News: Live UpdatesWest BankNetanyahuIranKarim KhanTrump's AircraftIsrael ElectionsHaQuizHaaretz PodcastUN Chief Slams Israel's Holding of Golan Heights in First Visit to Postwar SyriaEight Arrested in Tel Aviv as Israelis Protest Netanyahu Gov't, Jewish TerrorA Settler March to Gaza Unveils the Face of Netanyahu's GovernmentMaine Democrats Pick Troy Jackson as Graham Platner's Senate Race ReplacementIDF Conducts Extensive Raids in the West Bank After Friday Clash Left Six DeadRemembering and rebuilding two years laterICYMIAs Ground Invasion Looms, U.S. and Iran Want Wild-card Israel Out of the FightThe Original Ozempic Society of Ancient RomeBetween Messi and Milei: How Argentina Became Israel's Team at the World Cup'Choose Hope': Natalie Portman Backs Arab-Jewish Party Ahead of Israeli ElectionAn Israeli Election Surprise Called the DemocratsEd Miliband, the U.K.'s New Foreign Secretary – and His History With Israel