Tel Aviv / PNN /
The Israeli Broadcasting Authority reported that negotiations with Syria have reached a deadlock after Israel rejected Syria’s request for an immediate withdrawal from areas it occupied following the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
The Authority confirmed that “Israel rejected Syrian President Ahmad al-Shar‘’s request to withdraw from areas occupied after Assad’s fall, expressing its willingness to withdraw only upon the signing of a comprehensive peace agreement with Syria.”
Meanwhile, the Israeli army continues fortification and restoration work at military positions it took control of on the summit of Mount Hermon in Syria at the end of last year, signaling readiness for a long-term presence. This move comes amid Israeli concerns that a rapprochement between Washington and Damascus could force Tel Aviv to accept “undesired strategic concessions.”
Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper reported Israeli security concerns that a closer relationship between U.S. President Donald Trump and Syrian President Ahmad al-Shar‘ could impose field arrangements on Israel, particularly regarding military presence on Mount Hermon and other positions it controls in the Syrian Golan.
The report noted that over the past months, representatives from Benjamin Netanyahu’s government held talks with Syrian officials to reach new understandings for a ceasefire in the Golan, as an alternative to the 1974 disengagement agreement.
It emphasized that the discussions do not concern a peace agreement or normalization but rather aim to achieve a “new calm” that could be imposed on Israel if adopted by Trump under his approach to the Syrian file.
Israeli security agencies are reportedly pushing Netanyahu to maintain a long-term presence on Mount Hermon, considered a strategically important observation point to the north and to monitor smuggling between Syria and Lebanon, particularly activities linked to Hezbollah.
The Israeli army maintains eight additional positions inside the Syrian Golan, located a few kilometers from the border with the Golan occupied since 1967. The newspaper claimed that interactions between soldiers and local residents have remained limited, aside from isolated incidents.
Israel is reportedly considering withdrawing from some positions in the Syrian Golan in exchange for guarantees allowing freedom of action against “potential threats,” particularly in areas where Iran and Hezbollah have sought to consolidate their presence. However, Mount Hermon remains a site Israel does not wish to relinquish, although the newspaper noted that the final decision will likely be made in Washington and Ankara, not solely in Tel Aviv.
