From the Liveblog of
Monday, January 5, 2026
New round of US-mediated negotiations between Israel and Syria begins in Paris
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US-mediated talks between Syria and Israel have resumed in Paris, Syria’s state news agency SANA reports, the first meetings in nearly two months after progress toward a security arrangement between the countries stalled.
SANA, citing a Syrian government source, says the Syrian delegation is led by Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani and intelligence chief Hussein al-Salama.
The negotiations are expected to last two days, Axios reported yesterday, citing an Israeli official and another source with knowledge of the details.
US President Donald Trump, who has been eager for a deal to be signed, asked Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to restart the talks when they met last week at Mar-a-Lago, according to the report.
While Netanyahu agrees with Trump that a deal must be reached soon, he has insisted that an agreement not cross Israel’s red lines on ensuring security along its frontier with Syria, the Israeli official told Axios.
Syria is seeking an Israeli withdrawal to positions held before Bashar Assad was toppled in December 2024, and wants a reciprocal security framework guaranteeing its sovereignty and preventing interference in its internal affairs.
Trump’s Syria envoy, Tom Barrack, who is also the US ambassador to Turkey, is mediating the talks.
Netanyahu placed Israel’s ambassador to the US, Yechiel Leiter, at the head of the Israeli team, along with his military secretary, Maj. Gen. Roman Gofman, and acting National Security Adviser Gil Reich, the Axios report said.
The Times of Israel Community.