AP :
Israeli military operations inside southern Syria have intensified tensions and raised concerns about a prolonged Israeli presence as forces expand control within and around a buffer zone near the Golan Heights.
Last month, Israeli troops carried out a raid in the village of Beit Jin in southwestern Syria, during which 13 residents were killed, according to local accounts. Israel said the operation targeted members of a militant group planning attacks into Israel and that its forces came under fire, wounding six soldiers, before responding with ground fire and air support. Syrian authorities described the incident as a massacre, while residents rejected Israeli claims that militants were operating in the village.
The raid was one of several recent Israeli actions in Syria that have increased local opposition and reduced prospects for improved relations between the two countries, despite pressure from the United States to ease tensions.
Prospects for limited Israeli-Syrian engagement had emerged late last year after Sunni Islamist-led rebels removed former Syrian President Bashar Assad, a close ally of Iran. Syria’s interim president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, has said he does not seek conflict with Israel. Israel, however, has expressed distrust of al-Sharaa due to his past militant affiliations.
Israeli forces subsequently moved into the United Nations monitored buffer zone in southern Syria adjacent to the Golan Heights, which Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East war and later annexed, a step not widely recognised internationally. Israeli troops have established checkpoints, military positions and landing sites, including on Mt Hermon, and have increased patrols and drone surveillance across nearby Syrian areas.
