Tehran Summit Highlights Parties’ Diversion from Points of Agreement

Iranian Foreign Minister Amir Hussein Abdollahian with his Syrian counterpart, Faisal Mekdad, in Tehran on Wednesday (Iranian Foreign Ministry - DPA)
Iranian Foreign Minister Amir Hussein Abdollahian with his Syrian counterpart, Faisal Mekdad, in Tehran on Wednesday (Iranian Foreign Ministry - DPA)
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Tehran Summit Highlights Parties’ Diversion from Points of Agreement

Iranian Foreign Minister Amir Hussein Abdollahian with his Syrian counterpart, Faisal Mekdad, in Tehran on Wednesday (Iranian Foreign Ministry - DPA)
Iranian Foreign Minister Amir Hussein Abdollahian with his Syrian counterpart, Faisal Mekdad, in Tehran on Wednesday (Iranian Foreign Ministry - DPA)

The outcomes of the Iranian-Russian-Turkish summit on Syria revealed the continued divergence in the positions of its three parties, which was confirmed by the explicit rejection by Tehran and Moscow of any Turkish military move in the north of the country.

They warned of its impact on the stability of the region and the territorial integrity of Syria.

At the conclusion of the summit, which was devoted to discussing the Syrian file and the revival of the Astana process, the parties condemned the growing presence of terrorist organizations in various parts of Syria.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Russian President Vladimir Putin and their Iranian counterpart, Ibrahim Raisi, voiced their rejection of any attempt to create new facts on the ground under the pretext of combating terrorism, and their determination to face separatist agendas and infiltration operations that threaten the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria, as well as the national security of neighboring countries.

Erdogan has tried hard to persuade his Russian and Iranian counterparts to support a military operation he seeks to launch against the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in northern Syria, with the aim of establishing a 30-kilometer-deep safe zone that serves as a security belt on Turkey’s borders in the south.

However, the statement issued at the end of the summit, which concluded in Tehran on Tuesday, did not contain a reference to Russia and Iran’s approval of the Turkish request.

Some observers saw in the statement about “the increasing presence of terrorist organizations… in various regions of Syria,” as an attempt by Turkey to convince the actors in Syria that the Kurdish People’s Protection Units, the largest component of the SDF, was a terrorist organization and forms an arm of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party.

However, the statements and warnings that emerged following Erdogan’s meetings with his Russian and Iranian counterparts, revealed rejection of the Turkish military operation as a threat to the stability of the region.

Following the summit, Iranian Foreign Minister Amir Hossein Abdollahian gave a new clear indication that a common position had not been reached with Turkey regarding the situation in northern Syria.

In a joint press conference on Wednesday with his Syrian counterpart, Faisal Mekdad, who arrived in Tehran a few hours after the tripartite summit, Abdollahian reiterated his country’s concern over the possibility of Turkey launching new military action inside Syrian territory.

The Iranian minister expressed his hope that Turkish officials would take into consideration the recommendations emphasized in the tripartite summit of the leaders of the guarantor states of the Astana process, noting that the high-level meeting has helped put the Syrian crisis on the path of a political solution.

In turn, Mekdad affirmed his country’s rejection of the possible Turkish attack under the pretext of establishing safe areas.

He said that Turkey had no interest in carrying out an attack on Syria, expressing Damascus’ satisfaction with what he described as “the efforts made by Iran to come up with a balanced statement at the Tehran summit.”

During a joint press conference with his Russian and Iranian counterparts at the conclusion of the Tehran summit, Erdogan stressed his country’s determination to continue its struggle against what he described as “terrorist organizations” and to eradicate “hot spots” in Syria

On the other hand, Putin said that the Syrians should decide the fate of their country for themselves, away from foreign interference. Raisi, for his part, said all foreign powers should leave Syria.



Israel Delays Release of Palestinian Prisoners

Family members waiting for the release of Palestinian prisoners follow developments Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025, after receiving news that Israel has delayed the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners scheduled for Saturday, in the West Bank city of Ramallah. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)
Family members waiting for the release of Palestinian prisoners follow developments Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025, after receiving news that Israel has delayed the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners scheduled for Saturday, in the West Bank city of Ramallah. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)
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Israel Delays Release of Palestinian Prisoners

Family members waiting for the release of Palestinian prisoners follow developments Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025, after receiving news that Israel has delayed the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners scheduled for Saturday, in the West Bank city of Ramallah. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)
Family members waiting for the release of Palestinian prisoners follow developments Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025, after receiving news that Israel has delayed the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners scheduled for Saturday, in the West Bank city of Ramallah. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)

Israel said early Sunday the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners is delayed “until the release of the next hostages has been assured, and without the humiliating ceremonies” at handovers of Israeli captives in Gaza.

The statement by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office came as military vehicles that normally move in advance of the buses carrying prisoners left the open gates of Ofer prison, only to turn around and go back in.

The release of 620 Palestinian prisoners had been delayed for several hours and was meant to occur just after six Israeli hostages were released on Saturday. It was meant to be the largest one-day prisoner release in the Gaza ceasefire’s first phase.

Israel’s announcement abruptly put the future of the truce into further doubt.
The Palestinian Authority’s commission for prisoners’ affairs confirmed the delay “until further notice.” Associated Press video in the West Bank showed prisoners’ families, waiting outdoors in near-freezing weather, apparently dispersing. One woman was shown walking away in tears.

Five of the six hostages freed Saturday had been escorted by masked, armed militants in front of a crowd — a display that the UN and Red Cross have criticized as cruel after previous handovers.
The Israeli statement cited “ceremonies that demean the dignity of our hostages and the cynical use of the hostages for propaganda purposes.” It was likely a reference to a Hamas video showing two hostages who have yet to be released watching a handover in Gaza on Saturday and speaking under duress.
The six were the last living hostages expected to be freed under the ceasefire's first phase, with a week remaining in the initial stage. Talks on the ceasefire’s second phase are yet to start.
The six included three Israeli men seized from the Nova music festival and another taken while visiting family in southern Israel during the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, attack that triggered the 16-month war in Gaza. The two others were held for a decade after entering Gaza on their own.
Five were handed over in staged ceremonies.

The 620 Palestinian prisoners meant to be freed include 151 serving life or other sentences for attacks against Israelis. Almost 100 would be deported, according to the Palestinian prisoners' media office.
A Palestinian prisoner rights association said they include Nael Barghouti, who spent over 45 years in prison for an attack that killed an Israeli bus driver.
Also meant to be released are 445 men, 23 children aged 15 to 19, and a woman, all seized by Israeli troops in Gaza without charge during the war.