Israel struck dozens of sites in Syria overnight with airstrikes, despite the Syrian rebel leader, Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, saying his Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group was not interested in conflict with
Israel.
...
Netanyahu justified his announcement of plans to expand Israeli settlements in the part of the Golan Heights the country initially occupied in 1973 “in light of the war and the new front facing Syria” and a desire to double the Israeli population in the area.
“Strengthening the Golan is strengthening the state of Israel, and it is especially important at this time. We will continue to hold on to it, cause it to blossom and settle in it,” he said in the statement.
The UN has called on Israel to withdraw from the buffer zone, which sits between Syria and the Israeli-occupied area.
The UN secretary general, António Guterres, said he was “deeply concerned by the recent and extensive violations of Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity”.
France, Germany and Spain have also called on Israel to withdraw from the demilitarised zone.
The UN has said Israel is in violation of a 1974 disengagement agreement between Israel and Syria that established the buffer zone. Israel has said the 1974 disengagement agreement “collapsed” with the fall of the Assad regime government.
