Diplomatic contacts intensify after Israeli strike in Syria

ANKARA

Separate diplomatic contacts involving Türkiye, Israel and Syria are underway to ease tensions following Israel’s Aug. 18 strike on the Abu Duhur airbase in northwestern Syria.

A high-level Syrian delegation headed by Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani met an Israeli delegation in Jordan on Aug. 23 under U.S. mediation, Syrian state news agency SANA reported.

The Syrian delegation also included the heads of the country’s general and military intelligence services.

SANA did not identify the Israeli representatives, while Axios reported, citing three sources familiar with the meeting, that al-Shaibani met Mossad chief Roman Gofman.

The talks focused on establishing mechanisms to halt Israeli attacks, arrests and targeting operations in Syria and reviving negotiations aimed at reaching a security agreement, according to SANA.

The sides also discussed efforts to narrow differences between Türkiye and Israel and prevent tensions between the two countries from spilling over into Syrian territory.

In a separate interview with Reuters, al-Shaibani said he expected security talks with Israel to resume soon, although no date had been set. Damascus’ immediate priority was to halt Israeli attacks and take confidence-building steps, he said.

Israel said it struck the Abu Duhur airbase to prevent a planned Turkish military deployment at the site.

Both Türkiye and Syria rejected the claim, while Ankara condemned the attack as a violation of Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Israeli public broadcaster Kan separately reported that Israel and Türkiye were maintaining quiet backchannels to exchange messages and avert military friction over Syria, citing an unnamed Israeli defense official.

The official said Israel did not want Türkiye to become an enemy but would act if messages conveyed through the channels failed to produce results.

U.S. special envoy for Syria and Ambassador to Türkiye Tom Barrack said after the strike that Washington was working to establish a deconfliction mechanism among Türkiye, Israel and Syria to prevent future miscommunication.