Are Israeli expansion dreams beginning to come into effect?

A few hours separated the armed Syrian factions’ announcement of their control over the capital, Damascus, and Israel’s announcement of its occupation of the buffer zone and incursion into Syrian territory.

As usual, Israel seized the opportunity of the unrest taking place in the Syrian arena to impose a new reality using the logic of force and treachery. It took advantage of the weakness that struck the Syrian army during the past years to launch strikes that resulted in the destruction of the majority of the Syrian armed forces, especially aircraft, the naval fleet, radar bases, and strategic weapons stores. Especially the missiles.

In a step that did not fail to surprise the rapid advance of the Syrian factions until they took control of the capital, the head of the occupation government, Benjamin Netanyahu, announced the unilateral cessation of implementation of the 1974 disengagement agreement, claiming that with the withdrawal of the Syrian army from… The buffer zone was suspended according to the agreement, in a manner inconsistent with international laws.

The buffer zone and Mount Hermon

The Israeli army announced He deployed his forces in the buffer zone separating Syria from the occupied Golan Heights. This was preceded by military sources confirming control over Mount Hermon in Syria after the Syrian army withdrew from its positions.

The Golan Heights is one of the vital areas in the Levant, and Israel insists on control. It was obligated to occupy it, and Netanyahu came out to announce that it “will remain part of the Land of Israel forever.”

That region has represented a problem throughout For many decades, after the end of World War I, and in 1923, the French and British Mandate authorities controlled the Levant and Egypt. The borders were demarcated between the French Mandate over Syria and Lebanon, and the British Mandate over Palestine, and it was agreed at that time that the entire Golan Heights would be within the French Mandate areas. And the entire Lake Tiberias would be part of the British Mandate.

In 1946, the Mandate ended. The Golan Heights became part of the Syrian Republic, and with the establishment of Israel in 1948, the Arab-Israeli war broke out, and after that in 1949, a truce was reached between Syria and Israel that stipulated ceasefire borders between them, and the establishment of demilitarized zones near Lake Kinneret and the Hula Plain.

However, in 1967, Israel occupied the majority of the Golan Heights, including the city of Quneitra, in addition to The slopes of Mount Hermon, known in Israel as Mount Hermon, north of the Golan.

Following this, a truce agreement was reached between the two countries that includes a ceasefire line, what is known as the “Purple Line”.

In the October War of 1973, the Syrian forces attacked the Golan Heights and were able to advance in some areas, especially the southern parts of it, but Israel launched an attack A counterattack during which it regained control of the plateau, and the occupation penetrated east of the Purple Line, and occupied additional areas deep inside Syria that it had not occupied before 1973, including areas along the road between the Golan Heights and the capital, Damascus, and the summit of Mount Hermon.

In 1974, what is known as the “Disengagement Agreement” was reached, according to which Israel withdrew from all areas It occupied it in the 1973 war, in addition to limited areas it occupied in 1967, including the city of Quneitra. The two parties agreed to establish a buffer zone between the part of the Golan Heights occupied by Israel and Syria. This area would be within Syrian territory east of the Violet Line, and along the extension of the line from Mt. Sheikh in the north, reaching the border between Syria and Jordan in the south.

Under the agreement, Syria assumed civil administration within the separation zone, with the Syrian army remaining. Outside its borders, the agreement also included an area extending equally on both sides of the border, in which the size of the military presence would be limited for both parties according to certain understandings.

The separation zone extends over a length of 75 kilometers from north to south, and with a width ranging between 200 meters and 10 kilometers. The United Nations Disengagement Observer Force, known as UNDOF, is stationed within it and is responsible for monitoring the ceasefire between the two countries. Both parties.

For 50 years, the Disengagement Agreement remained in place despite violations occurring during the Syrian Civil War, represented by an increase in military activities in the separation zone.

Jabal al-Sheikh

< p>With Israel occupying the buffer zone in Syria again, it was keen to control Mount Hermon, because of its great importance to it.

In a statement, the occupation army claimed that its control of the buffer zone In the Golan and the Mount Hermon region, it is “necessary to ensure the security of the population of Israel.”

Despite the allegations made by Israel, from several levels, led by Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, that the goal is not to penetrate into Syrian territory and remain there permanently, Rather, exploiting the situation to enhance Israel’s security and protect the occupied Golan Heights, but the reality seems far from this claim.

Controlling Mount Hermon militarily gives it strategic depth. militarily for Israel in the southern region of Syria and Lebanon as well, especially since the mountain overlooks the capital, Damascus, and parts of Lebanese territory.

The Israeli Prime Minister had confirmed, saying: “We will not allow any hostile force to be stationed on our borders,” which He casts doubt on the validity of the Israeli statements that the occupation of the buffer zone and Mount Hermon is a temporary step.

especially since Hebrew media reports confirmed that the Israeli army is considering continuing the incursion into Syrian territory to expand the buffer zone in the Golan.

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