Israeli ambassador hints Lebanon and Syria could join Abraham Accords before Saudi Arabia

Israeli Ambassador to the United States Yehiel Leiter gave a wide-ranging interview to the conservative American media platform PragerU, released just a day after a deadly terrorist attack in Washington, D.C. that claimed the lives of two Israeli Embassy staffers, Yaron Lischinski and Sarah Milgrim.

The interview covered a broad spectrum of geopolitical issues, including Israel’s ongoing military campaigns, the future governance of Gaza, relations with the Trump administration, the prospects of normalising ties with Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states, the Iranian nuclear threat, and current developments in Israeli domestic politics.

During the conversation, Leiter raised eyebrows with a bold suggestion: Lebanon and Syria might join the Abraham Accords before Saudi Arabia. “There is no reason why we shouldn't move forward with the agreements. We have fundamentally changed the paradigm there [in Syria and Lebanon],” he asserted.

Leiter’s statement comes amid quiet but significant developments between Israel and Syria. In April, a secret Syrian delegation visited Israel for several days to meet with Israeli defence officials, according to a report in the Hebrew press. The delegation reportedly included officials from Syria’s Quneitra province and a senior figure from the country’s defence apparatus.

This rare and discreet engagement follows the reopening of a direct communication channel between Tel Aviv and Damascus. On May 7, several media outlets reported that the United Arab Emirates facilitated this backchannel dialogue, which focused primarily on security and intelligence cooperation.

Sources familiar with the discussions told reporters that while the initial topics were “technical matters,” there were no restrictions on what the dialogue might expand to in the future. These sources included a Syrian security official, a regional intelligence officer, and a person with direct knowledge of the negotiations.

The talks come in the context of a radically transformed Syrian political landscape. Syria is now governed by Ahmad al-Sharaa, a former commander of Al-Qaeda in Iraq. His rise followed the December ousting of long-time Syrian President Bashar al-Assad by militants from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a former Al-Qaeda affiliate previously known as the Nusra Front.

Israel has a history of covert support for HTS during the CIA-backed effort to remove Assad, including conducting airstrikes against Syrian government forces to protect Nusra fighters.

The revival of contact between Israel and Syria, against the backdrop of evolving regional alliances and the renewed influence of the United States under President Donald Trump, signals a potentially significant shift in Middle Eastern diplomacy.

By Tamilla Hasanova