The exact location of Israeli forces is unknown, and the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a British-based monitoring group, tweeted on social media on Tuesday that “Israeli tanks are being seen invading the countryside far southwest of Damascus. It was witnessed,” he said.
“The reports circulating in the media about the alleged march of Israeli tanks toward Damascus are false. IDF forces are… They are stationed in the breakaway region to protect the state of Israel.”
Just minutes earlier, Avichai Adlai, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesman, said that IDF forces were in “defensive positions within the buffer zone and near the border to protect the Israeli border.”
Hours later, Katz said he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had instructed the Israel Defense Forces to create a “barren defense zone from weapons and terrorist threats” in southern Syria “without a permanent Israeli presence.”
Katz added: “To protect the residents of the Golan Heights and the people of Israel, the Israel Defense Forces are currently completing the establishment of buffer zones and controlled areas.”
It was unclear exactly what this meant for the buffer zone.
Israel frames its actions as a necessary response to border uncertainty, but critics say they are in line with its devastating attacks on the Gaza Strip and Lebanon’s fragile ceasefire with Hezbollah. It claimed it was the latest example of destabilizing behavior by a US ally.
Qatar’s Foreign Ministry said Israel’s “attempts to occupy Syrian land will lead to further violence and tension in the region” and called the move “a clear violation of international law.”
Saudi Arabia said the action “confirms that Israel continues to violate the principles of international law” and called on the international community to respect Syria’s “territorial integrity.” Iran also condemned the Israeli military’s move as a violation of the UN Charter and called for immediate action from the UN Security Council.
Turkey, a U.S. NATO ally, also condemned Syria’s actions as it seeks “peace and stability,” saying Israel “has previously opposed displays of occupation mentality.”
“Significant risk”
Israel is not the only country operating in Syria.
Turkey is supporting one of the rebel groups, while Russia still has troops stationed in the country to support the Assad regime. The US has also stepped up its military operations in the region after the surprising ouster of President Assad, carrying out more than 75 strikes against ISIS camps to prevent the terrorist group from exploiting the situation.
But an Israeli ground attack carries “significant risks,” especially if it crosses the buffer zone as Prime Minister Netanyahu has suggested, geopolitical and security analyst Michael A. Horowitz warned.
Horowitz told NBC News in an email: “If Israel pushes further or remains permanently in the areas it currently controls, it will accelerate destabilization and use religious rhetoric to engage with Israel. “This will give strength to extremists who may be able to legitimize the fight.”
The roughly 155-square-mile buffer zone between Syria and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights was created after the 1973 Arab-Israeli War, the most recent of three wars between the two countries. Ta. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that the agreement establishing the zone had “fallen apart” after Syrian soldiers abandoned their positions amid the overthrow of Assad’s regime.
Meanwhile, Israel has carried out more than 300 airstrikes on research centres, weapons depots and military infrastructure across Syria, including naval bases on the Mediterranean coast, according to SOHR.
Katz said Tuesday that the Israeli navy destroyed a Syrian fleet in the Mediterranean Sea on Monday night.
News agency photos show a sunken Syrian navy ship in the port city of Latakia, destroyed by an Israeli airstrike, with smoke billowing from the wreckage.
Three nearby witnesses told Reuters that at least two explosions were heard in the Barzeh district near Damascus, where the Syrian Center for Scientific Research and Research has offices. News agency photos showed the site of destruction on Tuesday.
