Syria says Israel takes some territory around Mount Hermon despite talks
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The area is known for arms smuggling by Lebanon's Iran-aligned Hezbollah group and by Palestinian jihadist factions.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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CAIRO – Syria said on Aug 25 that Israel had sent 60 soldiers to take control of an area inside the Syrian border around Mount Hermon, saying the operation violated its sovereignty and posed a further threat to regional security.
Israel did not immediately comment on the accusation by Syria’s Foreign Ministry, which comes as the two countries engage in US-mediated talks
Aug 25’s incident took place near a strategic hilltop that overlooks Beit Jinn, an area of southern Syria close to the border with Lebanon, the ministry said. Israel also arrested six Syrians there, according to residents in the area.
The area is known for arms smuggling by Lebanon’s Iran-aligned Hezbollah group and by Palestinian jihadist factions. Previous Israeli incursions have mostly been in the southern Quneitra governorate.
The Israeli military on Aug 24 shared footage of what it said were troops locating weapons storage facilities last week in southern Syria.
“This dangerous escalation is considered a direct threat to regional peace and security,” the Syrian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Israel has cited its own security concerns for its military interventions inside Syria since the fall of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, including what it sees as its obligation to protect members of the Druze minority in southern Syria.
Hundreds of people were reported killed in clashes in July in the southern province of Sweida between Druze fighters, Sunni Bedouin tribes and government forces. Israel intervened with air strikes to prevent what it said were mass killings of Druze by the Syrian government forces.
In January, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said Israeli troops would remain on the summit of Mount Hermon indefinitely.
Israel has since then formed a de facto security zone, where it regularly patrols, sets up checkpoints, and carries out searches and raids in villages. REUTERS
