Illustrative image. (The Israeli Defense Forces)
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) announced on June 28 that its troops killed a number of gunmen in southern Syria a day earlier.
Reservists of the Etzioni Brigade opened fire and killed the “armed terrorists” inside the so-called buffer zone, the military said in a statement, without deliberating.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported several incursions by the IDF in the direction of Tell al-Mughar, a strategic hell located outside the buffer zone in the western Daraa countryside, overnight. However, the London-based monitoring group didn’t clarify if the deadly clash took place there.
The IDF invaded the buffer zone adjacent to the occupied Golan Heights in the governorate of al-Qunitra right after the fall of the regime of former president, Bashar al-Assad, more than a year ago, and has since established a series of posts there, including atop of the strategic Mount Hermon.
Since then, Israeli troops have conducted operations in al-Qunitra, as well as the neighboring governorates of Daraa and Rif Dimashq on a regular basis.
These operations created some serious tensions with the locals, which escalated into clashes on more than one occasion.
Several armed factions calling for fighting Israel emerged over the past year, the most recent of which, the Movement to Deter the Occupation, appeared to be supportive of the Syrian Islamist-led Interim Government. The group has not announced any attack yet, however.
The Syrian government, from its side, has repeatedly condemned the Israeli occupation of the buffer zone in al-Qunitra, but it has taken no actual measures against it.
Over the past year, several rounds of talks between Israel and Syria were held, with the United States leading mediation efforts.
The talks failed to produce a security agreement. Still, the Syrian government continues to honor the red lines set by Israel when it comes to the southern region. For example, its forces do not challenge IDF movements, or attempt to deploy any heavy weapons there.
On June 25, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said that the IDF will remain inside buffer zones in Lebanon, Syria, and the Gaza Strip, “without any time limit.”
Another round of talks between Israel and Syria will reportedly be held in the near future upon the request of the U.S. Taking into account Katz’s latest remarks, it is highly unlikely that an agreement will be reached. With the Syrian government unwilling to take action, the Israeli occupation of the buffer zone will likely continue in the long term.
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