Israeli, Syrian officials to meet in Azerbaijan to discuss situation in southern Syria
Israel’s Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer and Syria’s Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani are scheduled to attend the meeting, which will focus on the security situation in southern Syria.
A meeting between Israeli and Syrian ministers is due to take place in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Thursday, a diplomatic source told French outlet Agence France-Presse.
The diplomat noted that Israel’s Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer and Syria’s Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani are scheduled to attend.
The meeting will focus on “the security situation, particularly in southern Syria,” the diplomat told AFP, requesting anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the meeting.
Last week, Dermer and Shaibani met in Paris along with US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack and discussed the violence in southern Syria’s Sweida.
Notably, a US citizen was killed during the clashes between Druze and Bedouin militias in Sweida.
Members of Syrian security forces ride on a back of a truck after Syrian troops entered the predominantly Druze city of Sweida on Tuesday following two days of clashes, in Sweida, Syria July 15, 2025. (credit: REUTERS/KARAM AL-MASRI)
Syrian media corroborates report of upcoming meeting
Syrian and Israeli officials agreed to meet again after no final accord was reached in US-mediated talks in Paris on de-escalating the conflict in southern Syria, state-run Ekhbariya TV reported on Saturday, citing a diplomatic source.
The source described the dialogue as “honest and responsible,” in the first confirmation from the Syrian side that talks had taken place.
On Friday, US envoy Tom Barrack said officials from both countries spoke about de-escalating the situation in Syria during the talks on Thursday.
Amichai Stein and Reuters contributed to this story.