TPC Staff
The Palestine Chronicle / December 8, 2024
Israeli media reported heightened military activity, including Israeli forces entering Khan Arnabah in the occupied Golan Heights.
The Israeli army announced on Sunday an increased presence in the Golan Heights, deploying forces to strategic locations within the demilitarized zone in response to developments in Syria, Israeli media reported.
Citing a statement by the army, the Israeli newspaper The Times of Israel reported that the military “had taken up new positions in a buffer zone between Israel and Syria in the Golan Heights as it prepared for potential chaos”.
“The IDF has deployed troops in the buffer zone and in a number of areas that are necessary to defend, in order to ensure the security of the communities in the Golan Heights and the citizens of Israel,” the military reportedly said in a statement.
An army spokesperson emphasized that Tel Aviv is not intervening in Syria’s ongoing events.
“The Israeli army will continue to take necessary actions to preserve the demilitarized zone and protect the state and its people,” the spokesperson stated.
Meanwhile, Israeli media reported heightened military activity, including Israeli forces entering Khan Arnabah in the occupied Golan Heights.
The Israeli military also declared the Golan Heights border area with Syria a closed military zone.
Engaged in discussions
Israeli media outlets noted that the Israeli government has instructed its ministers not to speak publicly about Syria without prior approval.
The Israeli newspaper Maariv reported that Israel is engaged in discussions with certain factions within Syria, without providing additional details.
Late Saturday, militants entered Syria’s capital, Damascus, after the Syrian Arab Army withdrew from the city of Homs, where militants took control of the city and other towns in western Syria. The withdrawal occurred largely without clashes.
Reuters news agency, citing senior Syrian military officials, reported that President Bashar al-Assad left Damascus for an unknown location before militants entered the capital.
On Sunday, Syrian Prime Minister Mohammad Ghazi al-Jalali announced his readiness to cooperate with any leadership chosen by the Syrian people and to oversee a peaceful transition of power.
The leader of Hayʼat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a United Nations-listed terror organization, Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, issued a statement instructing militants in Damascus to avoid approaching public institutions, which are to remain under the supervision of the current prime minister until an official handover is complete.
The current conflict in Syria, led by HTS and other Turkish-backed militants, began on November 27, targeting Aleppo in the north. Militants subsequently captured Hama, then Homs, before advancing on Damascus.
Israel illegally occupied most of the Golan Heights during the 1967 June War and later annexed the territory, in a move that was never recognized by the international community.
The United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) has patrolled the buffer zone between Israeli- and Syrian-controlled areas since 1974.
