Why is Israel striking Syria?. ANALYSIS. After the fall of Assad, the Israeli military has taken control of a UN-controlled buffer zone in the Golan Heights, raising concerns of further instability. Tuesday December 10 2024, 1.00pm, The Times. Israeli military vehicles crossed the fence into the buffer zone with Syria near the village of Majdal Shams in the Golan HeightsAFP. The Israeli military has seized a UN-controlled buffer zone between Syria and Israel, and advanced further into Syria in a move that has broken decades of relative quiet on their shared frontier.. Over the weekend, Israeli aircraft also targeted Syria to destroy government military assets and weaponry that could potentially put Israel at risk, including chemical weapon stockpiles and missiles.. Israel appears to be pre-empting what could be the opening of a third front in the war against Iranian allies that has lasted for more than a year.. They have already been fighting Hamas and Hezbollah along its northern and southwestern borders, but now, a once frozen front on the Syrian border has reignited after the ousting of the Syrian president Bashar al-Assad and the takeover of rebel groups unfriendly to Israel.. • Syria latest: Israel denies sending troops beyond Golan Heights buffer zone. Advertisement. Rebels who overthrew Assad and are now de facto in charge of most of Syria are led by a former al-Qaeda commander, Abu Mohammed al-Jolani — who has evoked his family heritage hailing from the now-Israeli controlled Golan Heights. While Jolani has sought to distance himself from jihadism, the fast pace of his personal transformation and the opposition takeover has left a question mark over his ultimate intentions.. Israel says the seizure is a temporary measure, but the push into Syria has raised concerns that the country could seek to capitalise on the instability.. The buffer zone, patrolled by the UN and known as the area of separation, was created as part of a ceasefire that lasted for five years between Israel and Syria signed after the 1973 October war. Israel captured the Golan Heights in 1967 and annexed much of the area in 1981, a move recognised internationally only by the United States.. The UN now accuses Israel of having violated the 1974 disengagement agreement with Syria, which required Israeli forces to stay west of the Alpha Line on the Israeli side of the buffer zone, and Syrian forces to remain on their side of the Bravo Line to the east.. On Monday, Israel admitted to going beyond the Bravo line, where an United Nations Disengagement Observer Force base was attacked by armed gunmen at the weekend.. Advertisement. Israel’s entry into southern Syria pre-empts a potential fallout from the power vacuum left behind by Assad’s fall. The country’s military is looking to stabilise the area, taking overt measures to prevent the border and any former regime weaponry from falling into enemy hands.. A man searches for unexploded ordnance at the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted shipments of weapons that belonged to Syrian government forces in Qamishli, near the border with Turkey in northeastern Syria. DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES. Although this marks the first crossing into Syrian territory, this is not the first time Israel has entered the buffer zone. Last month, Israeli army vehicles and troops entered the area and dug trenches that the UN said violated the ceasefire agreement. Israel said the trenches were part of an effort to protect the country against incursions by Iranian militia groups based in Syria.. Since the October 7 attacks last year, the threat of land and air incursions has hung over Israel and drones and missiles fired by Iranian-backed groups have frequently been shot down. Israel also accuses Syria of being an “oxygen-line” funnelling weapons to Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed militia in Lebanon, wary that equipment can also be transferred the other way around.. • What Assad’s downfall in Syria means for Israel and Turkey. Israel has been striking targets in Syria for years, although does not usually claim the attacks. Recently, the country has been more open about its activity, part of its effort to cut off the supply line to Hezbollah and target Iranian interests in Syria including weapons shipments, personnel and positions.. From a palace to a dacha: the Assads in Moscow. December 10 2024, 12.01am. Simon Sebag Montefiore. Video Icon. VIDEO. What does fall of Assad mean for jihadi brides like Shamima Begum?. December 09 2024, 9.08pm. Tom Witherow. |. Larisa Brown. , Defence Editor |. Emma Yeomans. |. Matt Dathan. , Home Affairs Editor. PROMOTED CONTENT
