Netanyahu Asks US to Broker Israel-Syria Negotiations
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told US envoy Tom Barrack he is interested in negotiating with the new Syrian government, with the US serving as mediator, two Israeli officials told Axios on Wednesday.
'Netanyahu is interested in negotiating an updated security deal and working up towards a full peace agreement,' according to a senior Israeli official.
'When Barrack met Netanyahu last week, the Israeli prime minister told him he wants to use the momentum from the Trump-al-Sharaa meeting to start US-mediated negotiations with Syria,' an Israeli official said.
A senior Israel official also told Axios that Netanyahu's goal is to try and reach a set of agreements, starting with an updated security deal based on the 1974 disengagement of forces agreement, with modifications, and ending with a peace deal between the countries.
The prime minister believes Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa's aspiration to build close ties with the Trump administration create a diplomatic opportunity. 'We want to try and move towards normalization with Syria as soon as possible,' the official said.
According to the official, Barrack told the Israelis that al-Sharaa is open to discussing new agreements with Israel.
After his visit to Israel, Barrack traveled to Washington and briefed Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
A US official said the Israelis presented to Barrack their 'red lines' on Syria: No Turkish military bases in the country, no renewed Iranian and Hezbollah presence and the demilitarization of southern Syria.
The Israelis told Barrack they will keep their forces in Syria until a new agreement is signed that includes the demilitarization of southern Syria, an Israeli official said.
The official added that in a new future border deal with Syria, Israel wants to add US forces to the UN force that was previously stationed on the border.
In a related development, the Israeli forces on Wednesday seized one vehicle and arrested three workers employed by Al-Quneitra city council. The forces had advanced into Al-Qahtaniyah village in Syria's southern countryside of the governorate, deploying within residential neighborhoods and firing guns into the air.
The Syrian TV reported that the deployment coincided with loudspeaker announcements calling on residents to stay in their homes.
Last Sunday, the Israeli forces destroyed an agricultural land near the border in the southern countryside of Quneitra and confiscated a flock of sheep.
Earlier, the Israeli forces had carried out airstrikes in southern Syria, saying it hit weapons belonging to the government in retaliation for the firing of two projectiles towards Israel.
Israeli shelling also targeted agricultural areas in the Wadi Yarmouk region.
Residents described increased tensions in recent weeks, including reported Israeli incursions into villages, where they have reportedly been barred from sowing their crops.
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