Israel strikes and advances into Syrian territory after Assad’s overthrow, fueling alarm

The exact location of Israeli forces was unclear.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a U.K.-based monitoring group, said on social media Tuesday that “Israeli tanks were seen penetrating the far southwestern countryside of #Damascus.”

IDF spokesperson Nadav Shoshani said on X that “the reports circulating in the media about the alleged advancement of Israeli tanks towards Damascus are false. IDF troops are stationed within the area of separation, to protect the State of Israel.”

Just minutes earlier, the IDF’s Arabic spokesperson, Avichay Adraee, said Israel Defense Forces were inside the buffer zone “and at defensive points near the border in order to protect the Israeli border.”

Hours later, Katz said that together with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu he had instructed the IDF to establish a “sterile defense zone from weapons and terrorist threats” in southern Syria, “without a permanent Israeli presence.”

Katz added that “the IDF is now completing its establishment in the buffer zone and in controlled areas in order to protect the residents of the Golan Heights and the citizens of the State of Israel.”

It was unclear exactly what that would mean for the buffer zone.

While Israel frames its actions as a necessary response to the uncertain situation on its border, critics argued they were the latest example of the U.S. ally’s destabilizing actions amid its devastating assault on the Gaza Strip and fragile ceasefire with Hezbollah in Lebanon. 

Qatar’s Foreign Affairs Ministry said Israel’s “attempts to occupy Syrian lands will lead the region to more violence and tensions,” calling the move a “flagrant violation of international law.”

Saudi Arabia said the actions “confirm Israel’s continued violations of the principles of international law” and called upon the international community to respect Syria’s “territorial integrity.” Iran also condemned the Israeli military’s movements, describing them as a violation of the U.N. Charter and calling for immediate action from the U.N. Security Council.

And U.S. NATO ally Turkey said Israel was “once against displaying its occupying mentality,” condemning its actions while Syria strives for “peace and stability.”

‘Significant risks’

Israel is far from the only country acting in Syria.

Turkey backs one of the rebel groups, while Russia still has forces in the country that were there to support Assad’s regime. The U.S. also ramped up its military activity in the region after Assad’s stunning fall, carrying out more than 75 strikes against Islamic State camps to prevent the terrorist group from exploiting the situation.

But Israel’s ground offensive carries “significant risks,” especially if they are going beyond the buffer zone as Netanyahu hinted, warned Michael A. Horowitz, a geopolitical and security analyst.

“If it pushes further, or stays permanently in areas it currently controls, then this will fuel instability and embolden radical elements who could use religious rhetoric to justify fighting Israel,” Horowitz said by email.

The roughly 155-square-mile buffer zone between Syria and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights was created after the 1973 Arab-Israeli war, the most recent of three wars fought between the two countries. Netanyahu said Sunday that the agreement that established the zone had “collapsed” after Syrian soldiers abandoned their positions amid the overthrow of Assad.

Meanwhile, Israel has carried out over 300 airstrikes on research centers, arms depots and military infrastructure across Syria, including a naval base on the Mediterranean coast, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Katz said Tuesday that the Israeli navy had destroyed Syria’s fleet in the Mediterranean on Monday night.

Photos from news agencies also showed sunken Syrian naval ships in the port city of Latakia, with smoke billowing from the wreckage after they were laid to waste by Israeli airstrikes.

At least two explosions were heard in the area of Barzeh, near Damascus, where the Syrian Scientific Studies and Research Centre has an office, three witnesses in the neighborhood told Reuters. News agency photos showed the site destroyed Tuesday.