Representatives of the Syrian government and the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah held secret face-to-face talks in Turkey in an effort to ease tensions between the two sides, according to six sources familiar with the discussions.

It was the first known meeting between the two sides — which had been adversaries for years — since Bashar al-Assad was overthrown in late 2024.

Syrian officials and representatives of Hezbollah — which is backed by Iran — met secretly at least once last month, according to sources cited by Reuters, including two Syrian officials, a US official and a senior Lebanese security source close to Hezbollah.

From Assad allies to adversaries

For years, Hezbollah sent fighters to Syria to support Bashar al-Assad’s government during the civil war.

Following his overthrow in late 2024 after a rapid rebel offensive, relations between Syria’s new government and the Lebanese organisation deteriorated.

Damascus accuses Hezbollah of transporting weapons through Syria, while the United States has encouraged the Syrian army to send forces into Lebanon to confront the Lebanese organisation.

The September meeting was attended by representatives of Hezbollah, as well as officials from the Syrian intelligence services and Foreign Ministry, and was organised following an invitation from Turkish security and intelligence services as part of an effort to de-escalate tensions.

Turkey’s Foreign and Defence Ministries, Syria’s Foreign Ministry and the US State Department did not immediately respond to Reuters’ questions about the meeting. Hezbollah’s press office declined to comment.

Security concerns at the centre of talks

The talks focused on efforts to resolve points of tension between the two sides and, according to the US official, the Syrian officials and the Lebanese source, proceeded positively.

One of the Syrian officials said the two sides agreed that they harboured no hostility towards each other, while Syria reportedly assured Hezbollah that it would not intervene militarily in Lebanon with the aim of disarming the group.

The Syrian officials, for their part, asked Hezbollah to help end attempts to smuggle weapons across the border and to dismantle its remaining cells in Syria, particularly in the southern part of the country.

On Tuesday, Syria announced that it had arrested a Hezbollah member who was allegedly preparing to launch rockets in southern Syria. Hezbollah, for its part, denied any involvement, stating that it “has absolutely no presence on Syrian territory and is not involved in any security or military activity there”.

According to the Syrian official, Hezbollah representatives did not give a clear answer to the request to end weapons trafficking and dismantle its cells in Syria, but they pledged not to interfere in Syria’s internal affairs.

The Lebanese source, who has direct knowledge of the talks and their outcome, said the two sides “made significant progress on security issues”.

“Hezbollah wants to protect its rear,” the source said, referring to the organisation’s concerns about the possibility of a Syrian attack against it inside Lebanon.

Both the Syrian official and the Lebanese source said that no final agreement had been reached and that there had been no plans to publicly announce the meeting.

Turkey brought the two sides to the same table

The same source said that contacts between the two sides through Turkey had begun around two months before the September meeting.

Reuters was unable to confirm where in Turkey the meeting took place, how long it lasted or whether other meetings had taken place before or afterwards. Both Hezbollah and Syria’s new government had, however, indicated that they would be open to dialogue.

In July, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani said that Damascus was open to a meeting with Hezbollah. A month later, Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said in a televised address that the organisation had no objection to meeting with the Syrian leadership.

Ankara is seeking to play the role of a key regional player in Syria’s reconstruction and stabilisation. Under Recep Tayyip Erdogan, it has also sought to position itself as a mediator in other regional talks and to strengthen stability in the region.

Three of the sources said it was Turkey, a key ally of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, that had pressed for the meeting to take place, as it wanted to be directly involved in efforts to de-escalate tensions.

Iran left out

Iran, Hezbollah’s main backer, was absent from the talks. The Lebanese security source said that Hezbollah took part in the meeting with Tehran’s knowledge, but that Iran appeared displeased because it was not directly involved in the talks.

At the same time, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa has reportedly rejected, for the time being, any prospect of direct relations with Iran.

According to the Lebanese source, this dissatisfaction was the main reason why no final agreement was reached and the meeting was not made public.