JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has ordered the Israeli army to prepare for winter deployment on Mount Hermon, a strategic point overlooking Damascus, adding to signs that Israel’s presence in Syria will continue for a long time.
“Because of what is going on in Syria – there is a great need to maintain our position on Mount Hermon,” a statement from Katz’s office said on Friday.
The order shows that Israeli forces have moved into a buffer zone inside Syria and a few other points following the collapse of the government of President Bashar al-Assad may remain.
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that the military will remain in place until there is a force available to enforce the Demilitarization Agreement signed following the 1973 Arab-Israeli war.
Israel has said that this move is a limited and temporary measure to ensure the security of its borders but it is not known when it will decide when the situation in Syria is stable enough to withdraw its forces.
Katz said the extreme winter conditions on Mount Hermon, a 2,800-meter (9,186-foot) peak that straddles the border between Syria and Lebanon, made for the perfect conditions for a long-term stay by Israeli forces.
A number of countries, including France and the United Arab Emirates, condemned the Israeli invasion, saying it violated the agreement that followed the Arab-Israeli war. But America has given its support saying that this step was necessary to defend itself so that Israel can defend itself.
In addition to moving troops into the defensive zone, Israel also destroyed a number of weapons and ammunition belonging to the Syrian army this week, a move it says is aimed at preventing the equipment from falling into the hands of hostile forces.
While Israel welcomed the removal of Assad, an ally of its arch-enemy Iran, it remains suspicious of the rebel groups that ousted him, many of which have origins linked to Islamist groups including Al Qaeda,
(Reporting by James Mackenzie; Editing by Kevin Liffey and Gareth Jones)