Following the fall of the Assad regime, which has left Syria’s leadership structures in disarray and key positions unattended, the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) says its air force and navy have carried out more than 350 strikes since Saturday night, eliminating some 70-80% of Syria’s strategic military assets from Damascus to Latakia and deploying military forces in a buffer zone, a move criticised by France and the UN as a violation of the 1974 disengagement agreement, on Wednesday, the 11th of December, report the BBC and Politico.
Syria and Israel fought each other in the 1948, 1967 and 1973 Middle East wars and formally regard each other as enemy state.
Former Israeli air force officers revealed that some of the recent attacks were planned years ago and some targets were identified as early as the 1970s.
Defence Minister Israel Katz stated that the aim of the operation was to create a “sterile defence zone in southern Syria, free of weapons and terrorist threats”.
Israeli officials say their action is aimed at securing the country’s interests after Assad’s fall by preventing weapons from reaching extremist groups or Assad’s ally Hezbollah.
“We will not allow an extremist Islamic terrorist group to operate against Israel across its border, putting its citizens at risk,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a video message on Tuesday.
France and Germany have criticised Israel’s actions, with France demanding that Israel withdraw from the buffer zone and respect the “sovereignty and territorial integrity” of neighbouring Syria.
“As declared by the UN, any troop deployment in the buffer zone between Israel and Syria is a violation of the 1974 Disengagement Agreement, which the signatories Israel and Syria must respect,” a French Foreign Ministry spokesman said at a press briefing.
“France calls on Israel to withdraw from the area.”
The UN has also criticised Israel for violating the 1974 agreement.
Germany, together with Turkey, has warned Israel not to jeopardise the chances of a peaceful transition in Syria.
“We must not allow the Syrian internal dialogue process to be bombed from the outside,” said Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock.
The IDF incursion into the buffer zone was also criticised by Russia and Saudi Arabia, but defended by the US State Department through its spokesman Matthew Miller, who told a press briefing that “the Syrian army abandoned its positions in the area… which potentially creates a vacuum that could be filled by terrorist organisations”.
However, he added that “Israel has stated that these actions are temporary in order to protect its borders. They are not permanent actions… We support all parties abiding by the 1974 disengagement agreement.”
This contradicts statements by Netanyahu, who said on Monday: “The Golan Heights will be an integral part of the State of Israel forever.”
Netanyahu also thanked US President-elect Donald Trump for his 2019 decision to recognise Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights, most of which it occupied in the 1967 Six-Day War and unilaterally annexed in 1981.
Neither other countries nor the European Union recognise Israel’s right to the Golan Heights.