Syria And Turkiye Deny Secret Talks With Hezbollah In Turkiye

Denials after Reuters report

Syria’s Ministry of Information denied reports that government representatives held direct talks with Hezbollah in Turkiye, saying on its official X account that the “claims are false. No such meeting took place”.

Turkiye also denied that it took place, with the Turkish government labelling the claim as “baseless” in a statement on X.

Reuters had reported that Syrian officials and the Iran-aligned group met secretly in September, and Reuters said it spoke to six sources including two Syrian officials, a United States official and a senior Lebanese security source close to Hezbollah.

The meeting was described as the first reported direct talks between the longtime foes, and the meeting was held at the invitation of Turkish security and intelligence agencies to de-escalate regional tensions.

Reporting for this sectionAl Jazeera

What Reuters said happened

Syria and Hezbollah representatives agreed they harboured no mutual hostility, with Syria assuring Hezbollah that it would not intervene militarily in Lebanon to disarm the group which is fighting Israel in southern Lebanon. Syrian officials asked Hezbollah to help stop cross-border smuggling attempts and dismantle its remaining sleeper cells, particularly in southern Syria.

+3Assurance on Lebanon disarm9 of 11 outlets reported it · not in Al-Monitor and 1 more▾

Al-Arabiya said Reuters reported that the Syrian officials and representatives of the Iran-backed group met secretly at least once last month, describing it as the first of its kind between the two longtime rivals. The six sources told Reuters the meeting was held at the invitation of Turkish security and intelligence agencies in an effort to de-escalate.

Reporting for this sectionAl JazeeraAl-Arabiya

Talks, tensions, and next steps

A Lebanese source told Reuters that contact between the two parties via Turkiye had begun about two months ago, and Reuters said it could not confirm where in Turkiye the September meeting was held or how long it lasted. Damascus was open to meeting the group in July, and Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem said in a televised address in August that the group had no objection to meeting Syria’s leadership.

Syria’s Foreign Media Department, affiliated with the Ministry of Information, posted on X that “no such meeting took place,” adding that the “claims are false.” Turkey also denied the meeting, quoting a statement by the Turkish presidency’s communication office that the claims were “completely unfounded,” while Reuters had described the talks as an effort to ease tensions between the two sides.

Syrian X post denial3 of 10 outlets reported it · not in Al-Arabiya and 6 more▾

Reporting for this sectionAl-Monitor