Situation at a glance: Criticism of Israel’s advances in Syria continues

Israel appears to be planning longer-term control over areas beyond its border in Syria and the contested Gaza Strip. “We will stay here as long as it is necessary,” said Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz, according to the Times of Israel newspaper, during a tour of the Syrian buffer zone in the Golan Heights. Israel’s army broke into it after the coup in the neighboring country, which met with international criticism. According to Katz, Israel wants to retain security control in the sealed-off Gaza Strip even after a ceasefire has been agreed.

Katz toured the Golan Heights buffer zone accompanied by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. They got an idea of ​​the situation on Mount Hermon, Netanyahu’s office said after lifting a news blackout. The troop deployment was examined on site in order to decide on the further deployment of the army in “this important location” “until another arrangement is found that guarantees Israel’s security.” According to the Times of Israel, Defense Minister Katz described Mount Hermon as “the eyes of the State of Israel.”

Is Israel establishing itself in the Golan Heights?

Israel took advantage of the power vacuum in Syria following the overthrow of ruler Bashar al-Assad by a rebel alliance led by the Islamist group Haiat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) to advance its troops across the ceasefire line in the Golan Heights. The soldiers entered the so-called buffer zone, which is under UN surveillance in accordance with the 1974 ceasefire agreement. Israel also wants to expand the population of the Golan Heights. Currently, more than 50,000 people live on the rocky plateau, just over half of whom are Jewish Israelis and the rest Druze and Alawites. Arab countries condemned Israel’s plans.

The leadership in Jerusalem says it wants to prevent armed groups from attacking Israel from the high plateau. Israel conquered the area on this side of the ceasefire line in the Six-Day War in 1967 and unilaterally annexed it in 1981. Under international law, it belongs to Syria – at least that is the view of Germany and most other states.

UN spokesman criticizes Israel

The presence of Israeli forces in the buffer zone violates the 1974 ceasefire agreement, said UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric in New York. The agreement must “be respected,” he demanded. “An occupation is an occupation. Whether it lasts a week, a month or a year, it remains an occupation.” The leader of the Syrian HTS militia, Ahmed al-Sharaa, also expressed criticism of Israel’s military operations in Syria in interviews after his rebel alliance’s victory. Israel’s pretexts for this are unjustified, he said.

Israel wants to continue to control the Gaza Strip in the future

Meanwhile, there are increasing signs that Israel is preparing for an indefinite presence in the increasingly contested Gaza Strip. Defense Minister Katz said on Platform X that the military would maintain security control over the coastal area. After the military and administrative capabilities of the Islamist Hamas have been destroyed, this means “full freedom of action” for Israel’s army, just like in the West Bank. There, Israeli troops repeatedly raid cities that are actually under the security control of the Palestinian Authority.

Meanwhile, efforts to reach a ceasefire and release hostages in the more than year-long Gaza war continue. According to media reports, there had recently been indications that a breakthrough might be on the horizon in the indirect negotiations that had been stalled for months. However, there is still skepticism on the Israeli side. There are still obstacles and it could still be weeks before an agreement between Israel and Hamas is reached, according to Israeli media reports.

Israel attacks Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon

Meanwhile, the Israeli army said it attacked fighters from the pro-Iranian Hezbollah militia in southern Lebanon during the ceasefire there. In violation of the ceasefire agreement, the men loaded a truck with weapons, which was then shot at with the help of a combat drone, the army wrote on Telegram. According to the Lebanese Ministry of Health in Beirut, three people were injured in the attack in the town of Majdal Zoun.

The Hezbollah militia and Israel largely ended their mutual attacks at the end of November after more than a year with a ceasefire. The agreement stipulates, among other things, that Hezbollah withdraws behind the Litani River about 30 kilometers north of the de facto Israeli-Lebanese border. The Lebanese army is supposed to monitor compliance with the agreement. According to the agreement, Israel’s ground troops should gradually withdraw from Lebanon within 60 days.