Description: Israel and Syria have continued direct negotiations aimed at dousing down the reignited tensions since the HTS government and Al Sharaa came to power earlier this year. Unofficial sources have confirmed that senior security official Ahmad al – Dalati was leading the Syrian security delegation while Israel was represented by two senior security officials which were unidentified. Negotiations were being held regarding Israel’s recent incursions in the Golan heights, and the bombing runs on the capital Damascus, caused by the interethnic violence in early Apr, where members of the Druze minority in Syria were indiscriminately targeted by HTS security forces. Syrian President Ahmed Al Sharaa recently confirmed that his government and Israel were directly negotiating to diminish speculations that the new Syrian regime represented a threat towards Israel. The negotiations were further incentivized by the US, as US President Donald Trump effectively legitimized Al Sharaa as Syria’s new leader as he lifted US sanctions on the country. The negotiations were reportedly a prelude towards agreeing on a broader spectrum of cooperation between the neighboring countries in the future.
Impact: The continuation of direct unmediated negotiations between Syria and Israel arrives on the back of the US legitimization of the new Syrian government and pressure on Israel to cease their war in Gaza and the West Bank. Syria represented a third warfare front where Israel under the pretext of defending the Druze minority in the country continuously launched aerial and ground offensives to establish a foothold in the country. The negotiations enhance the political legitimacy and diplomatic credibility of the new Syrian regime as the country begins to slowly enter its reconstruction and reformist period. President Al Sharaa still struggles against numerous militant fractions within Syria as he continues to work towards consolidating power and conceptualizing some form of governance. The ongoing negotiations also lower tensions between Turkey and Israel which were recently on the brink of direct confrontation over power of influence in Syria.