Following the fall of the rule of President Bashar al Assad in Syria, the Israeli army has taken control of the Golan Heights buffer zone, as the Middle East Eye says. The Golan Heights was partially occupied by Israel in 1967; a buffer zone was created to displace the areas under Israeli and Syrian control in 1974.
On Sunday, rebel forces in Syria toppled Assad’s government and forced the Syrian forces to abandon their positions. The prime minister declared the collapse of the long-standing disengagement agreement between Israel and Syria, ordering his forces to take over the buffer zone and indeed some strategic positions in the vicinity.
Netanyahu was emphatic that Israel would not allow any hostile forces near its border. This was during a visit by him to the Golan Heights: “We will closely follow developments. We will do what is necessary to protect our border and our security.”
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The Israeli army ordered residents in five Syrian-controlled areas to stay at home. Netanyahu emphasized the opposition forces like Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which is hostile to Israel.
Israeli troops were dispatched to the Golan Heights after citing possible dangers from armed groups; the military will execute operations to keep the local communities safe.
Israel airstrikes delivered on Sunday reported damage to former military bases, now occupied by rebel forces in Syria, including an operation at Mezzah airbase near Damascus and depots located in regions such as Sweida and Daraa provinces.
Earlier that day, the last of the Syrian rebels to descend on Damascus found little in the way for resistance, taking several strategic sites over quick classrooms afterward, including that of the airport and state TV headquarters. Assad reportedly fled the capital before the rebels could arrive, where he now is said to be is anyone’s guess.