Syria’s president al-Sharaa meets with WJC head Lauder in NYC

Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa met in New York on Sunday with World Jewish Congress President Ronald Lauder to discuss negotiations between Syria and Israel, according to official Syrian media.

The meeting took place at the headquarters of Syria’s permanent mission to the United Nations on the sidelines of the 80th session of the General Assembly, according to Damascus-based news channel Al-Ikhbariah Syria.

“Lauder is of Syrian descent and participated in the track of Syrian-Israeli negotiations in the 1990s, and is known for his positions rejecting Israeli expansions on Syrian lands,” Al-Ikhbariah Syria reported.

Talks between Jerusalem and Damascus on a security agreement have hit a last-minute snag over Israel’s insistence on allowing a “humanitarian corridor” for the Druze minority living in southern Syria’s Sweida province, Reuters reported on Friday.

Jerusalem has pledged to continue to protect the Druze in southern Syria after militarily intervening on behalf of the ethno-religious minority in July when deadly clashes broke out between the Druze and government and Bedouin forces, leading to mass displacement and a humanitarian crisis.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed on Sept. 24 ongoing talks on a security pact with Damascus.

“Negotiations are underway with Syria. Their conclusion involves ensuring Israel’s interests, which include, among other things, the demilitarization of southwestern Syria and maintaining the safety and security of the Druze in Syria,” said Netanyahu.

Days earlier, Netanyahu dismissed reports that Israel would withdraw from the Syrian buffer zone as part of a potential deal.

U.S.-brokered talks have reportedly taken place in recent months in Baku, Paris and London and accelerated in recent weeks leading up to the U.N. General Assembly in New York.

In the Paris talks, Syria rejected an Israeli request to open a land corridor to Sweida for aid, saying it was a breach of sovereignty, according to Reuters, which reported that the renewed Israeli demand derailed plans to announce a deal last week.

U.S. special envoy to Syria Thomas Barrack, who is brokering the talks, said last week that the two countries were close to reaching a “de-escalation agreement” as a first step towards a security pact.

The Syrian president recently rejected the possibility of his country joining the Abraham Accords.