Netanyahu Visits Syrian Side of Mount Hermon: Israel Will Remain 'Until Another Arrangement Found'

Wednesday, 18 December 2024 | Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during his visit to the Syrian side of Mount Hermon on Tuesday that Israel and Israeli troops will remain at the site “until another arrangement is found that guarantees Israel’s security.”

Netanyahu made the statement alongside the heads of the defense establishment. "The events in Syria are happening at a dizzying pace, and their consequences could determine fates," he said.

Netanyahu held a briefing Tuesday on the site over the Syrian border, together with Defense Minister Israel Katz, Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, Northern Command Commander Gen. Ori Gordin, and Shin Bet head Ronen Bar. According to a statement from his office: "The Prime Minister reviewed the Israel Defense Forces [IDF] deployment in the area and set guidelines for the future."

"I am here on the summit of Mt. Hermon with the Defense Minister, the IDF Chief-of-Staff, the Head of Northern Command, the Director of the ISA [Israel Security Agency] and senior commanders. We are holding this assessment in order to decide on the deployment of the IDF in this important place until another arrangement is found that ensures Israel's security," he says.

"This is nostalgic for me; I was here 53 years ago with my soldiers on a Sayeret Matkal patrol,” he says. “The place hasn’t changed, it’s the same place, but its importance to Israel’s security has only been reinforced in recent years, and especially in recent weeks with the dramatic events taking place here below us in Syria. We will determine the best arrangement that will ensure our security.”

Syrian rebel leader Ahmad al-Sharaa (formerly Abu Mohammed al-Golani), addressed Israel for the first time over the weekend and said that Syria will continue to adhere to the disengagement agreement signed in 1974 following the Yom Kippur War. He called on the international community to ensure that Israel remained committed to the agreement. 

In a conversation he held on Monday with a small group of journalists, al-Sharaa sharply criticized Israel's "military advances" into Syrian territory beyond the Golan Heights and into the buffer zone declared by the UN under the agreement, which is considered disputed according to international consensus.

Israel has described its advances into Syrian territory as defensive measures aimed at preventing armed groups from seizing positions near the border and ensuring the security of communities in the Golan Heights.