The meeting in Ankara of the foreign ministers of Turkey, Jordan and Syria. Getty Images
The meeting in Ankara of the foreign ministers of Turkey, Jordan and Syria. Getty Images

Jordan and Turkey denounce Israeli intervention in Syria during Ankara meeting



Jordan and Turkey on Monday denounced Israel's intervention in Syria as destabilising to the country, amid regional changes caused by the fall of Bashar Al Assad's regime last year.

Since Hayat Tahrir Al Sham (HTS) took power in Damascus, Ankara has emerged as the main non-Arab power with influence on the new authorities. However, its position has been checked by Israel, as well as the continued presence of US troops in Syria.

Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said "Israel's aggression is an attempt to saw strife in Syria," adding that "Israel has no right to attack Syrian territory" as it will "not bring Syria anything except instability and destruction".

Mr Safadi was speaking after a meeting in Ankara with his counterparts Hakan Fidan of Turkey and Asaad Al Shibani of Syria. "The Israeli expansion is destabilising to the security of Syria and threatens its future," Mr Fidan said.

Mr Al Shibani said that Syria has been subjected to "systematic bombing by Israel" and that countries in the region have been putting pressure on it to stop.

Over the last four months, Israel has expanded a buffer zone in the Golan Heights, south-west of Damascus, and bombed military and militia installations, particularly in areas in southern Syria, near Jordan. In April, after a few weeks of lull, it bombed targets in Damascus near the presidential palace, in response to attacks by pro-HTS militias on members of the Syrian Druze community. The Druze, an offshoot of Islam, are also present in Israel, Lebanon and Jordan.

HTS, a group formerly linked with Al Qaeda, was allied with Turkey before it launched an offensive that ended five decades of Assad family rule on December 8. Saudi Arabia, Qatar and other Arab countries have also supported the new authorities, having initiated a rapprochement that had ended hostilities with Mr Al Assad in the last three years of his rule.

A western diplomat in Amman said that Jordan and other Arab countries, particularly Saudi Arabia, are in broad agreement with Turkey on the need to end Syria's fragmentation.

This is despite a US-backed Kurdish militia still being in control of large areas of eastern Syria and international concern over the fate of the country's minorities, who make up around a quarter of Syria's population. Pro-government forces carried out two mass killings against Alawites and Druze communities in the past two months, raising international condemnation and concern for minorities in the country.

"A divided Syria suits Israel more," the diplomat said, pointing out Israeli attempts to appeal as a protector to Syrian minorities.

Earlier on Monday, the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a group with a presence in Syria, said it will dissolve itself after decades of fighting an insurgency against Turkey. The decision could undermine the Syrian Democratic Forces, the main Kurdish militia in Syria, which was partly built around the PKK's fighting expertise.

In March, a security meeting in Jordan of Syria's neighbours called for the lifting of mainly western sanctions on Syria and reconciliation from the civil war. The country's ethnic and religious minorities have been generally wary of an eventual imposition of Islamist rule under the new authorities.

UK's plans to cut net migration

Under the UK government’s proposals, migrants will have to spend 10 years in the UK before being able to apply for citizenship.

Skilled worker visas will require a university degree, and there will be tighter restrictions on recruitment for jobs with skills shortages.

But what are described as "high-contributing" individuals such as doctors and nurses could be fast-tracked through the system.

Language requirements will be increased for all immigration routes to ensure a higher level of English.

Rules will also be laid out for adult dependants, meaning they will have to demonstrate a basic understanding of the language.

The plans also call for stricter tests for colleges and universities offering places to foreign students and a reduction in the time graduates can remain in the UK after their studies from two years to 18 months.

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

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Updated: May 13, 2025, 8:35 AM