Click to see the full-size image
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on December 13 that he had ordered the military to prepare to stay atop the Syrian side of Mount Hermon during the coming winter months as Israel aims to prevent the border region from falling into the wrong hands following the surprising collapse of the Assad regime.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) launched an operation in Syria just a few hours after the fall of the regime, occupying all of the buffer zone along the Golan Heights and launching hundreds of strikes against the bases and equipment of the now-dissolved Syrian Arab Army.
In a statement, Katz said that “due to what is happening in Syria, there is a huge security importance to our holding of the Hermon peak and everything must be done to ensure the IDF’s preparations in the area, to allow the troops to stay there in the difficult weather conditions.”
He ordered the move during an assessment he held a day earlier with IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi and other top officers.
Arab media reported that Israeli troops were preparing to expand their operations in southern Syria to the governorate of Daraa.
Meanwhile, an unverified video circulating on social media purported to show a man from the Druze village of Hader in the Syrian buffer zone asking to be annexed to the Israeli side of the Golan Heights.
In front of a large crowd, the man said Israel was the “lesser evil” facing the community – with the greater evil apparently being the Islamist rebels currently ruling the country.
So far, there has been no reaction whatsoever from Syria’s new government to Israel’s bold moves in the war-torn country.
While Israel is working to expand its control in Syria, Russia appears to be preparing for the worst. On December 13, large convoys of Russian forces, including units from the National Guards -Rosgvardiya-, withdrew from the capital, Damascus, as well as the governorate of Homs towards the coast.
The Russian bases in Tartus port and Khmeimim airport remain operational. However, all surrounding areas are held by the rebels.
Meanwhile, in northern and eastern Syria clashes between the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) came to a halt.
In addition, the command of the SDF, which is backed by the United States, has voiced its openness to hold talks with the new government in Damascus. There have also been no reports of any incidents between the group and the rebels.
Overall, Syria is still far from being stable. Israel’s expansion poses serious threats to the country’s unity. The future of the country will likely be determined in the upcoming few weeks. Any attempt by any side to dominate and rule alone will likely lead to trouble.
MORE ON THE TOPIC:
