Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the annexed by Israel part of the Syrian Golan Heights belongs to his country forever, reported France Press, quoted by BTA.
"Today, everyone understands the importance of our presence on the Golan Heights, not at the foot of the Golan,”, Netanyahu said during a press conference in Jerusalem. “The Golan will be part of the State of Israel forever”, he added.
Israel captured part of this mountain plateau in Syria in 1967. In 1973 repelled a Syrian attack aimed at recapturing the territory during the Arab-Israeli war before annexing the area in 1981. , recalls France Press.
"Our control of the Golan Heights guarantees our security, it guarantees our sovereignty,”, Netanyahu said.
„I want to thank my friend Donald Trump, who responded to my request to recognize Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights in 2019,” added the Israeli prime minister, referring to Trump's decision during his first term as president, which was contrary to a number of UN resolutions. According to the UN, this territory remains occupied and its annexation to Israel is illegal under international law.
Yesterday, Netanyahu announced that he had ordered the Israeli army to take control of the buffer zone on the border with the annexed part of the Golan Heights. The advance of the Israeli military in this area is a violation of a 1974 agreement. between Israel and Syria, a UN spokesman said today.
The UN force tasked with monitoring compliance with the 1974 agreement has confirmed that Israeli forces have entered the separation zone, moved into it and are there in at least three locations. said UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric.
"There should be no force or military action in the separation zone. Both Israel and Syria must continue to implement the terms of the 1974 agreement. and preserve the stability of the Golan”, the spokesman said.
Over 100 strikes were carried out by Israel yesterday on military sites of the forces of the ousted President Bashar Assad, reported AFP and DPA, quoted by BTA, citing the non-governmental organization Syrian Observatory for Human Rights .
According to the center's director Rami Abdel Rahman, Israel has stepped up its strikes to destroy the military capabilities of the former regime, which was ousted on Sunday by Islamist rebel groups. The strikes targeted the Barza research center north of Damascus, weapons depots in Deir ez-Zor province and near Qamishli military airport, as well as Israeli naval vessels in Latakia.
Lebanese pro-Iranian Shiite movement “Hezbollah“ condemned the strikes carried out by the Israeli Air Force and assured that it supports the Syrian people, reported AFP. This is de facto the movement's first comment since the fall of the Assad regime.
In a statement by “Hezbollah” a call is made to preserve the unity of Syria, and Israel is accused of occupying more territories in the Golan Heights and of striking the defense capabilities of the Syrian state.