TEL AVIV, December 9. /TASS/. Israeli forces are creating an additional security are outside the demarcation zone on the Syrian side of Mount Hermon in the Golan Heights, Dmitry Gendelman, an advisor to the Israeli prime minister, said.
"Israel continues to expand its control over the demarcation zone and other strategic points at Mount Hermon and the surrounding area. In order to eliminate threats and build contact with local Druze and other communities, Israel is creating an additional security area outside the demarcation zone," he wrote on Telegram.
The advisor pointed out that "Israel will continue to take action aimed at destroying strategic and heavy weapons in Syria and preventing any attempts to resume weapons supplies from Iran to Lebanon."
On December 8, the Israeli military took control of the Syrian side of Mount Hermon.
On November 27, Syria’s armed opposition units launched a large-scale offensive on the positions of government forces in the provinces of Aleppo and Idlib. By the evening of December 7, President Bashar Assad’s opponents had seized several large cities, including Aleppo, Hama, Deir ez-Zor, Daraa, and Homs. On December 8, they entered the Syrian capital, Damascus, while the army withdrew from the city. Assad resigned as president and left the country following intra-Syrian talks.
On the morning of December 8, the Israeli army declared the deployment of its forces in a buffer zone on the border with Syria. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu explained that the move stemmed from the recent events in the neighboring country and was a temporary defensive measure.
Golan Heights
The Golan Heights, which had belonged to Syria since 1944, were seized by Israel during the 1967 Six-Day War. In 1981, the Israeli parliament passed a law unilaterally declaring sovereignty over the Golan Heights. The UN Security Council declared the annexation null and void in its Resolution 497 on December 17, 1981.