The Israeli army will remain inside Syrian territory – in what is supposed to be a demilitarized zone – indefinitely, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday, as part of what he described as an effort to bolster security amid turmoil in Syria. .
The troops will remain “until another agreement is found that guarantees Israel’s security,” Netanyahu said atop Mount Hermon, which is divided between the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, Lebanon and Syria.
Israel entered the demilitarized buffer zone, east of the Golan Heights, earlier this month following the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime. Its capture of some 400 square kilometers of Syrian territory sparked accusations that Israel was violating the 1974 U.N.-brokered ceasefire that established the area, and that it was exploiting chaos in its northeastern neighbor to grab land.
Israel captured, and later annexed, the Golan Heights from Syria in the Arab-Israeli war of 1967. Its claim to the region is recognized only by the US.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz, who appeared with Netanyahu, said he had ordered the military to quickly establish a presence including fortifications, in anticipation of what could be a prolonged stay in the area.
The mountain’s summit, the highest point in the area, will be “the eyes of the State of Israel to identify our enemies near and far,” Katz said.
An Israeli military official, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity in accordance with military regulations, said there is no plan to evacuate Syrians living there from the area.
This is not the first time Israel has entered the buffer zone this year.
An AP report last month examining satellite images found that Israel had been working on a construction project, possibly a new highway, near Syria since July, and in some cases had entered the area during construction.
UN forces later warned that the Israeli army has committed “serious violations” of its ceasefire agreement with Syria.
Airstrikes across Syria
Israeli troops began advancing toward the buffer zone on December 7, according to Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar; On the same day, unidentified gunmen attacked UN forces in Syria.
“(The Israeli army) took selective and temporary control of certain areas near the border to avoid an October 7 scenario from Syria,” Saar said at the time, referring to Hamas’ 2023 surprise attack on Israel from the Strip. Loop.
This was followed by a wave of airstrikes inside Syria that hit more than 350 targets, including anti-aircraft batteries, military airfields, weapons production sites, fighter jets and missiles, the Israeli military said.
Israeli missiles also attacked Syrian ports where 15 warships were docked.
Israeli officials said the strikes in Syria were aimed at destroying strategic weapons and military infrastructure to prevent them from being used by rebel groups that ousted al-Assad from power, some of which emerged from movements linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State. .
Netanyahu previously described entering the buffer zone as a necessary “temporary defensive position.”
Regional condemnation
A UN spokesman said Tuesday that the advance of Israeli troops, however long it lasts, violates the agreement that established the buffer zone.
That agreement “must be respected, and occupation is occupation, whether it lasts a week, a month or a year, it is still occupation,” said Stéphane Dujarric.
There was no immediate comment from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the insurgent group that led the overthrow of al-Assad, or Arab states.
Earlier, Ahmad al-Sharaa, Syria’s de facto leader and head of the HTS, said Israel is using false pretexts to justify its attacks, but made clear that it is not interested in getting involved in new conflicts while the country focuses on reconstruction.
Others in the region condemned Israel’s entry into Syrian territory earlier this month. The Egyptian Foreign Ministry accused Israel of “exploiting the power vacuum… to occupy more Syrian territories and create a fait accompli in violation of international law.”
Saudi Arabia separately criticized Israel for its “determination to undermine opportunities for Syria to restore its security, stability and territorial integrity.”
