Syria, Israel near 'de-escalation' pact, US envoy says

Syria and Israel are close to striking a "de-escalation" agreement in which Israel will stop its attacks while Syria will agree to not move any machinery or heavy equipment near the Israeli border, a senior US envoy said on Tuesday.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of UN General Assembly meetings in New York, US Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack said the agreement would serve as the first step towards the security deal that the two countries have been negotiating.

Syria and Israel are in talks to reach an agreement that Damascus hopes will secure a halt to Israeli air strikes and the withdrawal of Israeli military forces who have pushed into southern Syria.

Syrian President Ahmad al Shaara on Tuesday blamed Israel for stalling on negotiations and invading the Syrian airspace.

“We are not the ones creating problems for Israel. We are scared of Israel, not the other way around,” he said during an event of the Middle East Institute.

“There are multiple risks with Israel stalling on the negotiations and insisting on violating our airspace and incursions into our territory,” he said.