Syria-Israel talks are focused on reducing military presence near the Golan, source says

'No political issues discussed' in meetings held in UN-patrolled zone of the Golan Heights

An Israeli Merkava tank heads to the buffer zone between Israel and Syria near the village of Majdal Shams in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights on May 8, 2025. EPA

Talks between Syria and Israel have focused on the sides cutting back their military presence near the Golan Heights, a Syrian political source said.

The source, who does not hold a government position, told The National that “no political issues have been discussed”.

Syria is demanding that Israel withdraws its troops to a 1974 armistice line on the Golan Heights, the source said. Israel sent its forces across the line into Syrian territory after rebel forces toppled former president Bashar Al Assad in December.

The Israelis want the Syrian government to commit to an expanded demilitarised zone, free from heavy weapons, that runs from the Golan Heights to the outskirts of Damascus, the source said.

Security teams from the sides have been discussing the details in an area of the Golan Heights patrolled by United Nations Disengagement Observer Force, the source said, without naming the participants.

Syrian President Ahmad Al Shara said this month that Syria is engaged in “indirect talks through mediators” with Israel “to calm down the situation so that it does not get out of control”.

Quoting sources, Reuters reported on Tuesday that a Syrian team led by Ahmad Al Dalati, a colonel in the security forces, held direct talks with Israel in the region of Quneitra, the heart of the 1974 demilitarised zone.

Mr Al Dalati told Syrian state television that he “categorically denies participating in any direct talks with the Israeli side”.

“Such claims lake accuracy and credibility,” said Mr Al Dalati, who was appointed this month as governor of the mostly Druze province of Suweida in southern Syria.

Syria and Israel have been technically at war since 1967. Israel seized the Golan Heights that year and annexed it in 1981. Syria launched an unsuccessful war to regain the area in 1973, leading to the creation of the UN demilitarised zone the following year.

The regime of Mr Al Assad, and his father Hafez held peace talks with Israel several times without reaching an agreement.

On May 14, President Donald Trump met Mr Al Shara in Riyadh after being urged to do so by Ankara and Saudi Arabia and he asked Syria to join the Abraham Accords that established diplomatic relations between Israel and a number of Arab states.

Although Mr Al Shara's Hayat Tahrir Al Sham group is a former ally of Al Qaeda, many see him and his government as a bulwark against more extreme elements. Israel bombed Syria since he was named leader by fellow rebels in late January, but the raids have subsided in recent weeks.