Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a session of the Knesset, Israel's parliament, in Jerusalem, Wednesday, July 17, 2024. (AP/Ohad Zwigenberg)
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Israel’s government has approved a plan to expand settlements in the occupied Golan Heights, a move that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called necessary due to a “new front” on Israel’s border with Syria following the fall of the Assad regime to Islamist-led rebels, according to the BBC.
Netanyahu aims to double the Golan Heights’ population, which Israel seized in the 1967 Six-Day War. While Israeli forces recently moved into a buffer zone between Syria and the Golan Heights, Netanyahu said Israel has “no interest in a conflict with Syria” and would determine its policy “according to the reality on the ground.”
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More than 30 Israeli settlements, housing 20,000 settlers, exist alongside 20,000 Syrians, mostly Druze Arabs. Settlements are considered illegal under international law, which Israel disputes.
Netanyahu said Israel would “continue to hold on to ([the territory), make it flourish and settle it.” However, former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert questioned the move, saying, “We have enough problems to deal with.”
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Netanyahu’s announcement followed criticism from Syria’s new leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, who condemned Israeli airstrikes. Al-Sharaa said Syria’s “war-weary condition” prevents new conflicts. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported over 450 Israeli strikes since Dec. 8.
The strikes come amid Syria’s leadership transition after President Bashar al-Assad fled to Russia. Al-Sharaa leads efforts to form a transitional government, despite HTS — his group — remaining designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S. and others.
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UN Syria envoy Geir Pedersen urged an end to sanctions to aid recovery, while Turkey’s Defense Minister Yasar Guler said Ankara was ready to support Syria’s new government.
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