Can one enter Syria from Israel?

After checking with the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a travel agency in Israel that specialises in trips to Arabs countries, this is my understanding of the situation (which hasn't changed for a long time.

The basic principle seems to be that the Syrians do not want any tourists who either are Israelis or have visited Israel . The only exceptions are Druze from the Golan Heights (even that's not simple - see http://thestar.workopolis.com/servlet/Content/qprinter/20070313/MARRIAGE13 and Eran Riklis's excellent film The Syrian Bride )
and UN and Red Cross personnel.

So a first requirement is a non-Israeli passport which was not issued in Israel. However it is not enough that your non-Israeli passport should not have an Israeli stamp in it (Israeli border police, if asked, will agree not to stamp a foreign passport on entering Israel). There should also not be any stamps from any of Israel's land border crossings with Jordan or Egypt.

This means, for instance, that if a Syrian border official would see an Egyptian stamp from the Taba border crossing near Eilat or a Jordanian stamp from the Jordan River border crossing , he will most likely not let you enter Syria.


Therefore, to visit Syria you must have a non-Israeli passport with no Israeli stamps. You must travel to Syria via another country e.g. Cyprus or Turkey. You should have no personal effects or documents with any Hebrew writing on them and nothing which shows any link or connection to Israel. The Syrians are said to be especially watchful for any Israeli connections of those arriving from Jordan, so best not to enter Syria from Jordan if you have another choice.

If you have an Israeli passport, use your foreign passport to enter the country from which you will be travelling to Syria. If you do not have Israeli nationality and you plan to visit Israel on the same trip that you want to visit Syria, make sure that your passport is not stamped on entry to or exit from Israel. Most countries can arrange (wuth advance notice) to issue temporary second passports in third countries.

Please comment if you have experience of visiting Israel and Syria.