Illustrative image. (Israeli Defense Forces)
Israel’s defense minister on September 23 warned Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa that Israel would not withdraw from Mount Hermon or a security zone inside Syria, and threatened that any additional territory captured in a future conflict could remain under Israeli control for eternity.
Defense Minister Israel Katz was responding to Sharaa’s remarks at the United Nations General Assembly in New York, where the Syrian president reaffirmed Damascus’ claim to the Golan Heights and called Israel’s annexation of the territory invalid under international law.
“The Golan will remain Syrian land,” Sharaa said, adding that Israel’s annexation measures were invalid under UN Security Council Resolution 497. He also rejected what he called attempts to impose “new facts on the ground” and said Syria remained committed to the 1974 Disengagement Agreement.
Sharaa called for Israeli forces to withdraw to the lines they held before December 8, 2024, the date of the fall of former Syrian President Bashar Assad.
He accused Israel of carrying out nearly 500 air and artillery strikes, more than 1,200 incursions and about 300 arrests and detentions of Syrians since then, saying the actions threatened Syria’s stability.
Katz rejected the Syrian president’s demand and stressed that Israel would remain on Mount Hermon and in the security zone.
“We will not withdraw from Mount Hermon and the security zone,” Katz said, arguing that the positions had been handed to Syria under the 1974 Disengagement Agreement under conditions that were later violated.
Katz said Israel would maintain its presence “as long as there is a jihadist threat” to the Israeli border and communities, including threats from Syrian security forces or other armed groups in Syria. He said Israel had entered the area after Assad’s fall to prevent such threats. He went on to issue a broader warning if Syria attacks Israel.
“If Israel is attacked from Syria,” Katz said, “any territory we take this time will remain ours forever, in accordance with the laws of war.” The minister added: “We will not allow Syria to become a threat to Israel, and we will act as necessary to prevent this.”
Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and annexed the territory in 1981. The UN does not recognize that annexation. Security Council Resolution 497, adopted unanimously in 1981, declared Israel’s decision to impose its laws, jurisdiction and administration on the Golan “null and void and without international legal effect.”
After the fall of the Assad regime, Israeli forces moved beyond the established separation line into the demilitarized buffer zone created under the 1974 agreement. Israel has described the move as necessary for its security, while the UN said military activity in the separation area would violate the disengagement agreement.
The exchange underscores the sharp disagreement between Syria and Israel over the future of the Golan and the Israeli military presence in southern Syria. The two countries engaged in a series of talks brokered by the United States and other countries over the past year. However, they failed to reach any agreement.
While Sharaa’s recent remarks present a departure from the soft stance his Islamist-led government has adopted towards Israel since assuming power in the country, it is highly unlikely that his words will translate to any form of action. It is more likely that the remarks are meant for internal consumption, especially as Damascus has been facing growing internal criticism over its leanings in dealing with the Israeli threat.
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from assisting this terrorist group to patching up their fighters in isreali hospitals, this spat doesn’t seem genuine. sharaa knows that if he abandones what syrian people are left in the golan the rest of syria isn’t going to play ball. so he and mr milliekowsky play the game between themselves, hoping that everyone else is convinced. the apartheid regime has plans to take the rest of syria anyway.