Syria wants diplomatic solution with Israel despite attacks: FM

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani said Tuesday that his country is working towards a diplomatic solution with Israel, with US mediation, despite ongoing Israeli attacks.

He made the comments at a press conference with his visiting Danish counterpart Lars Lokke Rasmussen.

What has Syria's foreign minister said about a diplomatic solution with Israel?

Shaibani said Syria remains committed to a diplomatic solution and is engaged in negotiations mediated by the United States.

He confirmed the talks aim to stop Israeli attacks and arrests and secure a full Israeli withdrawal to positions held before December 2024.

Why is Israel attacking Syria?

Israel has launched hundreds of strikes on Syria since the Islamist authorities ousted longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December 2024. It has also sent troops into a UN-patrolled buffer zone that separated Israeli and Syrian forces on the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights since 1974.

Israel has carried out repeated incursions deeper into Syrian territory. It has vowed to keep troops in a so-called "security zone" in southern Syria, where it seeks a broader demilitarized area. Shaibani said 65 incursions were recorded in July alone, and 52 more in the first 18 days of August.

He also criticized a "campaign of raids on homes in Quneitra province and the Damascus countryside." Syria has registered 147 cases of Israeli troops detaining Syrians so far this year, Shaibani said, with 49 of them still in detention.

What are the talks between Syria and Israel about?

Israel and Syria have held several rounds of direct talks, most recently last month in Jordan following fresh Israeli strikes, including one on a disused airbase in the country's northwest. Israel said it wanted to prevent Turkish troops from deploying to that facility, a claim Ankara denied.

Two sources told AFP that Shaibani met the head of Israel's Mossad intelligence agency, Roman Gofman, in Jordan. After January negotiations in Paris, the two sides agreed to establish an intelligence-sharing mechanism as they edge towards a security agreement.

Why does Israel still have troops in southern Syria?

Shaibani said Tuesday that statements from Israeli officials about keeping forces in Jabal al-Sheikh, or Mount Hermon, amounted to "an explicit declaration on consolidating the occupation." He said these statements invalidated "any flimsy security pretexts" Israel had previously cited.

Last week, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz visited troops in southern Syria and reiterated a pledge to keep forces there as long as "threats" to Israeli security persist. Israel captured most of the Golan Heights from Syria in the 1967 Arab-Israeli War and later annexed the areas under its control, a move recognized only by the United States and Colombia.