Syria and Israel have held several rounds of direct talks in recent weeks aiming to quell spiralling tensions between the neighbouring countries, said three people briefed on the situation.
The talks were the first known direct contact between the new leadership in Damascus and their Israeli counterparts amid a spate of Israeli air strikes on Syrian soil, said the people, who included Western diplomats and a Syrian official. The two countries have not historically had diplomatic relations.
“This is only the beginning, but the talks are focused largely on preventing the outbreak of hostilities and encouraging the Israelis to pull back from the Syrian border areas they have encroached on,” said one of the people.
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