Syria is choosing diplomacy with Israel, but can its approach last?

Ever since the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s government, Syria has chosen diplomatic engagement with Israel over military confrontation.

As Syria’s new government attempts to rebuild the country after more than a decade of war, the country’s officials have committed themselves to a policy of avoiding conflicts with their neighbours.

Yet Israel continues to disrupt any efforts at a more sustained peace agreement, including through repeated attacks on Syrian soil. But analysts told Al Jazeera that despite these provocations, Damascus sees the diplomatic track as its only choice.

“Syria’s government is intensely pragmatic in that it’s willing to basically sit down and talk to and do deals with people as long as it promotes Syria’s national interest,” Rob Geist Pinfold, a lecturer on security studies at King’s College London, told Al Jazeera.

Under the al-Assad presidency, Syria was a part of the Iran-driven “axis of resistance” that also included other allies of Tehran. Syrian territory was used to transport weapons and financial aid from Iran to Tehran’s Lebanese allies, Hezbollah.

The Syrian military itself, however, has not engaged militarily with Israel since a 1974 disengagement agreement signed under Bashar’s father and predecessor, Hafez al-Assad.

When rebels led by current President Ahmed al-Sharaa took Damascus and deposed the al-Assad government in December 2024, Israel instantly responded by attacking Syria’s military infrastructure around the country. Israeli troops also moved further into parts of southern Syria, beyond the occupied Golan Heights. Almost two years later, Israeli troops continue to set up checkpoints and harass and arrest Syrian citizens in these parts of the country.

Since then, Syrian officials, including President al-Sharaa, have said they have no intent to attack Israel and that they seek peace with all their neighbours. Still, Israel has threatened the Syrian government on numerous occasions, warning them not to deploy military troops in southern Syria and even bombing the Syrian Ministry of Defence in Damascus in July 2025.