Israeli and Syrian officials hold 'positive' talks over security agreement

Israeli and Syrian officials have concluded a positive round of US-sponsored negotiations in Paris aimed at reaching a security agreement. The talks, the fifth of their kind, involved high-level delegates and focused on reviving the 1974 disengagement agreement and establishing confidence-building measures. Syria is reportedly seeking a full Israeli withdrawal from positions seized after December 2024, following Israel's expansion into a UN-patrolled buffer zone in the Golan Heights. The negotiations are part of a broader US initiative for the Middle East, with both countries expressing a desire to reach an agreement and planning to meet more frequently.