Syria confirmed on Tuesday that its foreign minister met with Israeli officials in Paris in a rare round of direct talks aimed at reducing tensions and restoring a decades-old ceasefire agreement.
The meeting, brokered by the United States, came as Washington presses to normalize relations between Jerusalem and Damascus.
In the past, Syria has recommended indirect talks with Israel to ease tensions, but this is the first time the two sides have engaged in direct talks in recent years.
According to the Syrian state news agency SANA, Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani and Israeli officials reached “understandings that support stability in the region” under US mediation. Among the topics discussed was the renewal of the 1974 ceasefire agreement between the two countries.
This holiday season, give to:
Truth and understanding
The Media Line's intrepid correspondents are in Israel, Gaza, Lebanon, Syria and Pakistan providing first-person reporting.
They all said they cover it.
We see it.
We report with just one agenda: the truth.
Israeli media reported that Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer attended alongside US envoy Tom Barrack. Israel has not formally commented on the meeting.
A senior Trump administration official said Washington backs “any efforts that will bring lasting stability and peace,” adding that President Trump envisions a “stable Syria at peace with itself and its neighbors — including Israel.”
The talks follow heightened tensions since the overthrow of Syrian leader Bashar Assad in December, which left a fragile new government in power. Israel, wary of hostile forces returning to its frontier, seized parts of the buffer zone near the Golan Heights and carried out strikes against military positions it deemed a threat.
The Druze community has figured prominently in recent clashes. Last month, Israel struck Syrian forces in As-Suwayda province, saying it was defending the Druze after fighting erupted between them and government-aligned groups. Hundreds of Druze have since demonstrated for self-determination, with some waving Israeli flags
In Paris, US envoy Barrack also met Israeli Druze spiritual leader Sheikh Muwaffaq Tarif, who appealed for humanitarian aid and protection for Syria’s besieged Druze minority.