In a surprising turn of diplomatic events, sources have revealed that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to meet with Syria's President, Ahmed al-Sharaa, in Washington this September, i24NEWS reported. The meeting, scheduled to take place ahead of the annual UN General Assembly, marks a rare high-level encounter between Israeli and Syrian leaders.
While details of the agenda remain scarce, sources suggest that the meeting will revolve around a potential security agreement between Israel and Syria that would serve as the first step toward a normalization agreement between the two countries in the vein of the Abraham Accords.
This planned meeting comes after several months of informal backchannel talks between Israel and Syria. The potential summit is expected to have a profound impact on the regional balance of power, particularly in light of Syria’s recent attempts to reassert its influence in the region following years of isolation due to the civil war.
Observers have noted that the timing of this potential meeting is significant, as the United States has been seeking to recalibrate its Middle Eastern strategy, and a meeting between Netanyahu and al-Sharaa could be part of a broader diplomatic outreach.
The UAE is reportedly heavily involved in mediating between Israel and Syria. The sources stated that one of the obstacles to a deal is the new Syrian government's insistence on an Israeli withdrawal from the Syrian side of the Golan Heights, which Israel seized as a security buffer zone following the overthrow of the Assad regime in late 2024. Israel is reluctant to withdraw from the security buffer zone before it is convinced that the new Syrian government has established control and removed the danger from Islamist militias within its borders.