Syria’s President Confirms ‘Indirect’ Talks with Israel

Syrian President Ahmed al-Shara’a confirmed on Wednesday that Syria is holding “indirect talks” with Israel.

Al-Shara’a made the announcement in Paris during a news conference alongside French President Emmanuel Macron in his first official visit to Europe.

The United Arab Emirates is quietly facilitating the backchannel talks, which are focused solely on security and intelligence issues, Reuters reported. The talks involved UAE, Syrian and former Israeli intelligence officials.

“There are indirect talks [with Israel] taking place through mediators to calm the situation and try to contain the situation so it does not reach the point where it escapes the control of both sides,” al-Shara’a told reporters.

“Random Israeli interventions… have violated the 1974” armistice, Sharaa said. “Since we arrived in Damascus, we have told all relevant parties that Syria is committed to the 1974 agreement.”

Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes in Syria since December to prevent advanced weapons gifted to Assad by Iran and Russia from falling into the hands of the jihadists who now rule the country.

Al-Shara’a, whose nom de guerre is Abu Mohammad al-Julani, served as the commander of the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) terrorist organization that topped the regime of then-President Bashar al-Assad in December 2024.

The terrorist leader officially began serving as Syria’s president in January 2025.

Although al-Shara’a has made numerous public statements committing his new government to “unity” and “peace,” his followers – often backed by al-Shara’a government ministers – are continuing to attack Syrian minorities they consider to be in violation of Islamic dictates.

Among the populations under attack are Syrian Christians and Druze, many of whom are closely related to the Druze community in Israel.

Israel has pledged to protect the Syrian Druze from harm in response to pressure from its own Druze citizens, many of whom serve in the Israel Defense Forces.

“We are trying to speak with all countries that are in contact with the Israeli side to pressure them to stop interfering in Syria’s affairs, violating its airspace and bombing some of its facilities,” al-Shara’a told the reporters.

He added that he discussed the “ongoing Israeli threats” with Macron, who told journalists he believes Israel’s actions are “bad practice. You don’t ensure your country’s security by violating the territorial integrity of your neighbors.”

Last Friday, Israel bombed a site just 400 meters from the presidential palace in Damascus as a warning to al-Shara’a over the ongoing attacks on Syrian Druze and other minorities in the country.

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