Israel has made much of the idea that Syria’s new Islamist government is a direct threat to them, as they continue to invade southern Syria and carry out regular airstrikes across the country. Quietly, they’ve been carrying out negotiations since at least April under UAE mediation.
Multiple officials from the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) government in Syria, including an unnamed senior defense official and top officials from the Quneitra Governorate, visited Israel secretly on a multi-day visit for the delegation.
The talks reportedly began just days after HTS leader Ahmed al-Sharaa visited the United Arab Emirates on April 13. A few days later, technical discussions began. More recently, the talks have been reported to centered on security matters. Sharaa has confirmed the talks are ongoing, saying they’re meant to ease tensions.
There’s a lot to talk about, security-wise. Israel is occupying much of Quneitra and parts of Daraa Governorates and has presented that occupation as more or less open-ended. They carry out airstrikes several times a week against Syrian targets, hitting the Damascus presidential palace grounds on Friday. Official Israeli statements on Syria are almost always threatening further escalation, with the idea that HTS is a major enemy.
Settling the security issues is job one, but sources are quoted as saying there is no limit to how much could be discussed between Israel and Syria. The HTS has expressed openness to working with Israel since even before they seized power, and reports of their willingness to normalize relations have been reported for weeks.
Indications are that these secret talks have included some fairly highly ranked HTS officials, but so long as the public Israeli stance toward them remains one of hostility, it’s not clear how far they can potentially reconcile their differences.
