Netanyahu talks Syria with Russian foreign minister

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed Russia’s foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, and chief of General Staff, Valery Gerasimo, in Jerusalem on Monday to discuss the situation in southern Syria, said Russia’s Foreign Ministry.

The meeting took place as Syrian regime forces are advancing westward towards the border with the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights region.

"During the conversation, the parties discussed various aspects of the Middle East agenda, focusing on the situation in Syria and around it,” said a ministry statement.

The meeting was meant to follow up talks held by Russian and Israeli leaders on July 11 in Moscow, it said.

Palestinian-Israeli relations as well as bilateral ties were also discussed, the ministry said.

On June 20, the Assad regime and its allies launched a wide-ranging offensive aimed at reestablishing control over southern Syria, including Daraa.

On July 6, Russian officials and armed opposition groups agreed to a permanent cease-fire in southern Syria.

Following peace talks last year in Astana, Daraa and Quneitra were both designated “de-escalation zones” in which acts of aggression are prohibited.

Syria has only just begun to emerge from a devastating conflict that began in 2011 when the Assad regime cracked down on demonstrators with unexpected ferocity.