From the Liveblog of
Sunday, August 24, 2025
US envoy meets Netanyahu on Lebanon and Syria
Top US envoy Thomas Barrack arrived in Israel today and met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss Syria and Lebanon, three Israeli officials say.
The meeting was first reported by Axios, citing three Israeli and US sources, and followed discussions between Barrack and Israel’s Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer and Defense Minister Israel Katz.
US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee also reportedly joined the meetings. The envoys are expected to travel to Lebanon tomorrow, with senior Republican Senator Lindsey Graham set to join them in Beirut.
Dermer held talks with Syria’s Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani in Paris on Tuesday on security arrangements in southern Syria, two Syrian sources familiar with the meeting said.
Syrian and Israeli officials have been conducting US-mediated talks on de-escalating conflict in southern Syria. A previous round of talks was held in Paris in late July but ended without a final accord.
On Monday, Barrack said in Lebanon that Israel should comply with a plan under which Hezbollah would be disarmed by the end of the year in exchange for a halt to Israel’s military operations in Lebanon.
The Times of Israel Community.