Israel plans an extended occupation of Syrian buffer zone
TEL AVIV
The sun rises over homes covering a hill in the town of Majdal Shams, near the "Alpha Line" that separates the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights from Syria, early Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that Israeli forces will stay in a buffer zone on the Syrian border until another arrangement is in place “that ensures Israel's security.”
Netanyahu made the comments from the summit of Mount Hermon — the highest peak in the area — inside Syria, about 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the border with the Israel-held Golan Heights.
It appeared to be the first time a sitting Israeli leader had set foot that far into Syria. Netanyahu said he had been on the same mountaintop 53 years ago as a soldier, but the summit’s importance to Israel’s security has only increased given recent events.
Israel seized a swath of southern Syria along the border with the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights days after Bashar al-Assad was ousted by rebels last week.
“We will stay ... until another arrangement is found that ensures Israel’s security,” said Netanyahu who had traveled to the buffer zone on Dec. 17 with Defense Minister Israel Katz.
On Dec. 15, The Israeli government approved a plan to increase the population of the annexed Golan Heights.
Meanwhile, in its campaign in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli military ordered another evacuation ahead of an offensive in the area, even as Israel and Hamas appeared to inch closer to a ceasefire in the 14-month war.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog said he will meet on Dec. 18 with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's Mideast envoy, Adam Boehler, at his home in Jerusalem.
Hundreds of Israeli students walked out of school on Dec. 18 to call for an immediate deal to release the remaining hostages. From Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, students headed for central junctions, blocking roads and holding signs with the faces of the captives remaining in Gaza.
