Israeli-Syrian security pact stalls over Druze corridor demand

Shafaq News – Damascus

Efforts to finalize a security agreement between Israel and Syria have faltered after Israel renewed a demand to establish a “humanitarian corridor” to Syria’s southern Suwayda province.

Israel, home to about 120,000 Druze citizens whose men serve in its army, argued that the corridor is necessary to protect the Druze community in Syria, which constitutes most of Suwayda’s population. The proposal was first raised during the Paris talks but dismissed by Damascus.

The late-stage demand derailed plans for an imminent announcement, sources told Reuters, adding that Damascus rejected the move as “a breach of its sovereignty.” A Syrian official, however, described earlier exchanges before the UN General Assembly as “positive,” while confirming that no further contact with Israeli representatives had taken place this week.

Talks began after Bashar al-Assad’s ouster in December 2024, when Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and other armed factions seized Damascus, and Israel advanced into southern Syria, voiding the 1974 US-brokered disengagement deal. Under US mediation in London, Israel proposed demilitarized zones, flight bans, and retaining positions on Mount Hermon (Jabal al-Sheikh) in exchange for phased withdrawals.

Syrian transitional President Ahmad al-Sharaa later told the UN the aim was to safeguard sovereignty while easing Israeli concerns, but Syrian officials insist negotiations cannot exceed the 1974 framework and refuse normalization or joining the US-sponsored Abraham Accords, which normalized ties between Israel and several Arab states.

Read more: Syria's shifting stance: Is normalization with Israel on the horizon?