Momentum builds for Israel-Syria peace as Trump reboots regional diplomacy

For the archetypal time, Syrians are openly calling for peace with Israel. In an interrogation with Fox News Digital, writer Furat Alali from Damascus said, "We privation a aboriginal without wars. We privation to live. People are not acrophobic to talk up anymore." 

Her connection reflects a important displacement successful the country’s governmental landscape, arsenic galore Syrians statesman to openly sermon the imaginable of bid with Israel. This alteration comes astatine a clip erstwhile Syria and Israel are engaged successful nonstop talks arsenic Reuters revealed connected Tuesday, marking a melodramatic departure from the decades-long hostility betwixt the 2 nations.

Reuters reported, Israel and Syria person precocious held nonstop meetings focused connected information issues on their shared border. These talks correspond a large measurement successful the narration betwixt the 2 countries, which person been adversaries for decades.

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A Syrian absorption combatant takes a representation of a comrade stepping connected a representation of Syrian President Bashar Assad successful Aleppo, aboriginal Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024.  (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

Sources acquainted with the discussions person indicated that the U.S. has played a pivotal relation successful facilitating these talks, encouraging Syria’s caller enactment to prosecute with Israel.

The discussions travel aft a displacement successful U.S. policy, pursuing President Donald Trump’s gathering with Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa earlier this month. The gathering signaled a interruption from decades of U.S. hostility toward Syria’s Assad authorities and opened the doorway to imaginable normalization betwixt Syria and Israel. 

While the talks are inactive successful the aboriginal stages, Trump’s engagement has raised the anticipation of Syria’s enactment yet normalizing ties with Israel, though this process volition apt instrumentality time.

Furat Alali explained: "We don’t privation to beryllium portion of the Axis of Resistance anymore. The Palestinian origin has been utilized to oppress us. We consciousness sympathy for the Palestinians, but present we request to absorption connected Syria and our future."

U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa successful Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, successful this handout released connected May 14, 2025. Saudi Press Agency/Handout via Reuters. 

Lina Ali, a 24-year-old pharmacist from Latakia, told Fox News Digital, "We consciousness for the radical of Gaza. We condemn the wide killings, but we are successful a antithetic situation. We are reasoning astir our ain interests now. The thought of exploiting the Palestinian origin to oppress the Syrian radical has been rejected. We are bushed of this."

Another young pistillate interviewed by Jusoor News, a Pan-Arab media outlet, shared akin thoughts: "We are for thing that serves our country’s interest. We’ve lived done hard times. The country’s system is precise weak. It’s clip for radical to live."

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An aged Syrian antheral explained to Jusoor, "We’ve spent 40-50 years preaching Arabism and liberating Palestine, and what bash we person to amusement for it? Nothing. It’s clip for peace." 

The displacement successful Syria’s stance connected Israel is significant, particularly fixed the historical enmity betwixt the 2 nations. For decades, Syria and Israel person been locked successful conflict, with the presumption of the Golan Heights remaining a cardinal constituent of contention since its seizure by Israel during the 1967 war. Syria’s engagement successful the Axis of Resistance, aligning with Iran and Hezbollah against Israel, has been a cornerstone of its overseas policy.

However, the caller emergence of interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa has raised caller possibilities, arsenic good arsenic concerns.

Furat Ali said, "I was 1 of the journalists who extensively covered the violations of Jabhat al-Nusra earlier the autumn of the Assad regime, the radical Al-Jolani emerged from (using his erstwhile name), which was portion of al-Qaeda. I cognize precisely what they did. So, erstwhile I archetypal heard that Al-Jolani was taking implicit Aleppo and challenging Assad, I was scared." 

The Syrian service sends reinforcements, including tanks, armored vehicles and rocket launchers, to Latakia and Tartus arsenic hunt operations against the ousted authorities forces grow pursuing an onslaught connected information forces successful Latakia state of Syria connected March 7, 2025. (Izettin Kasim/Anadolu via Getty Images)

"But arsenic clip went on," she added, "when helium rebranded himself arsenic Ahmed al-Sharaa and promised a caller direction, I saw helium was smart. He managed to person the West to assistance sanctions and prosecute with him, bringing backmost planetary designation for Syria. While we stay skeptical and cautious, what we’re seeing from Sharaa domestically is truthful acold being accepted."

Joseph Braude, founder and president of the Center for Peace Communications, highlighted the value of the displacement successful nationalist sentiment wrong Syria. He noted, "People successful Syria and Lebanon often subordinate the Palestinian contented with dictators who exploited it to warrant corruption and brutality. There is simply a increasing rejection of pro-Palestinian militancy, arsenic galore radical present tendency to crook the leafage and absorption connected caller partnerships aimed astatine processing their ain countries.

"We judge that it has go a bulk presumption successful Syria that if bid with Israel brings economical improvement and improvements, past it’s worthy pursuing."

Syrians stitchery astatine Umayyad Square to observe the illness of 61 years of Baath Party regularisation successful Damascus, Syria connected December 9, 2024. (Murat Sengul/Anadolu via Getty Images)

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He besides pointed retired that successful countries dominated by Iran and its militias, mean radical person the clearest knowing of the harm these groups cause. "They are among the astir anxious for a antithetic future, progressively calling for peace," Braude added.

As 1 antheral interviewed by Jusoor News enactment it: "We’ve suffered years of oppression and war. It’s clip for reconstruction. We request bid with everyone," different Syrian added’ "I enactment normalization a cardinal percent! If normalization with Israel, oregon America oregon whoever tin bring america comfort, past I’m connected board. We conscionable privation peace!"