Syria, Israel hold US-mediated talks to ease tensions: Report

Syria and Israel held high-level, US-mediated talks in Jordan on Sunday (Aug 23) aimed at easing tensions following recent Israeli strikes on Syrian territory, Syria's state news agency SANA reported, citing a diplomatic source at the foreign ministry.

The talks focused on practical mechanisms to halt Israeli strikes, arrests and targeted operations, and on reviving negotiations towards a security agreement that could lay the groundwork for a broader future accord, SANA said.

The two sides also discussed efforts to ease tensions between Israel and Türkiye and to prevent their rivalry from spilling onto Syrian territory.

Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani told Reuters on Saturday that Damascus expected security negotiations with Israel to resume soon, although he added that there was a lack of trust between them.

Talks had been suspended since the start of the Iran war, while Syria cut off contact entirely after Israeli strikes on Syria’s Abu al-Duhur airbase last week, according to Shaibani.

Washington has for more than a year sought to broker a security agreement between Israel and the government of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa.

Shaibani said the two sides had agreed on paper to “almost everything” around the beginning of the year, including arrangements for security zones in southern Syria and a buffer zone where only United Nations forces would be present, but Damascus doubted Israel's willingness to implement the agreement.

The Israeli prime minister's office did not reply to a request for comment on Shaibani's remarks.

At Sunday’s meeting, SANA said, Syria indicated that its immediate priorities remained an Israeli withdrawal to positions held before Bashar al-Assad's overthrow on Dec 8, 2024, and the full restoration of a 1974 disengagement agreement.

Damascus also told the Israeli delegation it would not accept arrangements restricting its right to rebuild and develop its armed forces or determine its alliances and partnerships, SANA said.

Syria reiterated that the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights were Syrian territory but said discussions over the region's final status were premature, according to the SANA report.

Israel has carried out repeated strikes on Syrian military sites since Assad's fall, saying its actions were necessary to protect its security. Syria has denied posing a threat to Israel and has demanded an end to Israeli strikes and incursions.

Syria and Israel have technically been at war since 1948. Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in the 1967 Six-Day War and later annexed it, a move recognised by the United States but not by most of the international community.