Syria Israel security deal is being pursued, Ahmed al-Sharaa says
Ahmed al-Sharaa told Al Jazeera that Damascus is seeking a security arrangement with Israel while preserving its Golan claim.
By James Whitfield · Staff Writer
3 min read
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa said Damascus is working on a Syria Israel security deal involving several countries, a move he framed as a possible opening toward wider peace. In an interview with Al Jazeera’s Al Muqabala programme, he said Syria wants to avoid clashes with Israel while addressing repeated Israeli military activity in the south.
Al-Sharaa said he hoped a security arrangement could become a step toward a broader settlement. He also said any deal would not give up Syria’s claim to the occupied Golan Heights, which Al Jazeera described as territory Israel has occupied since 1973.
The remarks come after Israeli incursions and strikes in southern Syria since al-Sharaa took power in December 2024 after the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s government, according to Al Jazeera. The full interview was scheduled to air at 19:00 GMT.
What is Syria seeking from a security deal with Israel?
Al-Sharaa said Syria is trying to prevent direct confrontation with Israel and use a security arrangement as a path toward a larger resolution. He presented the effort as separate from Syria’s position on the Golan Heights, saying that claim would remain intact.
A security deal of this kind would focus on reducing military friction and managing immediate risks, based on al-Sharaa’s comments. He did not announce a signed agreement, identify the countries involved or give a timetable for the talks.
Al-Sharaa rules out military intervention in Lebanon
Al-Sharaa also told Al Jazeera that Syria does not plan to send forces into Lebanon, despite recurring speculation about a possible intervention. He said his government is instead discussing ways Lebanese authorities can address the country’s crisis and move it toward stability.
Al Jazeera reported that Israel is occupying southern Lebanon amid months of fighting between Hezbollah and Israeli forces. The report said the Lebanese state is seeking to regain occupied areas and establish sole control over weapons inside the country.
Al-Sharaa said Damascus supports limiting weapons and placing decisions of war and peace exclusively in the hands of the Lebanese state. He added that Lebanon’s problems require a broad political and social response, not a security-only approach.
He warned that any slide into chaos in Lebanon would quickly affect Syria. He also said any expansion of the US-Israel war on Iran would have serious consequences across the region.
Sanctions, the SDF and Syria’s missing
On Syria’s economic position, al-Sharaa said lifting sanctions imposed by the United States and other countries would not be enough if Syria remains listed as a state sponsor of terrorism. He argued that sanctions relief and delisting are linked in practice.
Al-Sharaa also addressed an agreement with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, an alliance of Kurdish and Arab armed groups that controls areas in northern and eastern Syria. He acknowledged delays in carrying it out but said his government remains committed to the deal and still expects it to succeed.
On missing persons, al-Sharaa said Syrian authorities have formed a special committee to handle cases from the country’s war between 2011 and 2024. Al Jazeera cited a United Nations estimate that about 100,000 people were forcibly disappeared during the conflict, while Syria’s National Commission on Missing Persons believes the number of missing Syrians could be as high as 300,000.
Al-Sharaa said the committee would work according to international standards and cooperate with countries that have expertise in the field.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.