The Israeli army is preparing to remain on the border peak of Mount Hermon for the winter

The Israeli army is preparing to remain on the border peak of Mount Hermon for the winter

Israel’s defense minister has instructed troops to prepare to stay for the winter on the peak of Mount Hermon, which lies on the border between Syria, Lebanon and the UN demilitarized buffer zone in the Golan Heights.

The announcement comes after Israel captured the area on December 8 following the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Defense Minister Israel Katz’s office said in a statement that “our capture of the peak is of utmost security importance because of what is happening in Syria”.

katz posted a photo on x Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is shown using binoculars with the words: “Looking at the Syrian peak of Mount Hermon, which has returned to Israeli control after 51 years.”

The United Nations has called on Israel to withdraw from the buffer zone, which lies between Syria and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a statement that he was “deeply concerned by the recent and widespread violations of Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity”.

The United Nations has said Israel is violating a 1974 agreement between Israel and Syria that established the buffer zone.

Israel has said that the 1974 agreement on troop withdrawal “collapsed” with the collapse of the Syrian government.

The summit of Mount Hermon is on the Syria–Lebanon border. A United Nations base near the summit is within the buffer zone.

The Golan Heights is a plateau about 60 km (40 mi) south-west of Damascus.

Israel seized the territory from Syria in the final stages of the 1967 Six-Day War and annexed it in 1981. This move was not recognized internationally, although the US did so unilaterally in 2019.

After the Assad regime was overthrown by rebel forces in Syria, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) took control of the buffer zone and moved into new positions in the Golan Heights, including the top of Mount Hermon.

The statement from Katz’s office said that “everything must be done to ensure the IDF’s preparedness on the spot to allow fighters to remain there in case of severe weather conditions”.

Guterres said Thursday that the 1974 agreement “remains in force” and condemned any actions inconsistent with it. He called on its parties to uphold their obligations, including “eliminating all unauthorized presence in the area of ​​separation.”

Guterres also said he was “particularly concerned” about hundreds of Israeli airstrikes on several locations in Syria.

The IDF said its air force and navy carried out more than 350 strikes this week targeting Syrian military assets.

Israel said it was working to prevent weapons from falling “into the hands of extremists”.

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