Israeli Military Chief Visits Occupied Syria, Warns 'Enemy Threats Will Not Be Tolerated'

The Chief of the General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) visited occupied southern Syria on the 19th local time, warning that hostile forces will never be allowed to establish a presence near the border.

Chief of the General Staff Eyal Zamir stated, "We are closely monitoring changes on the Syrian front," adding, "We will not allow hostile forces to build a foothold on our border, and we know exactly how and where to use our operational capabilities whenever and wherever necessary."

He also noted, "We are still fighting a multi-front war and are maintaining a high state of alert and conducting operations across all sectors," emphasizing, "Tensions can escalate on any front, so we must maintain constant readiness."

Although Zamir did not explicitly specify the hostile forces inside Syria that day, his remarks appeared to be directed at Turkey.

Previously, the Israeli military carried out airstrikes the day before on the Abu Duhur air base located in Idlib Governorate, northwestern Syria.

Israel accused Syria's new government of violating existing agreements by allowing the deployment of Turkish troops at the base.

The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement, "Israel repeatedly warned Syria that the deployment of Turkish forces would pose a security threat to Israel, but Syria chose to ignore these warnings."

Turkey, which has been at odds with Israel in recent years, dismissed these allegations.

Tom Barrack, U.S. Ambassador to Turkey, also criticized the airstrikes, condemning Israel as engaging in "unnecessary escalation."

The Syrian Foreign Ministry condemned "in the strongest terms the Israeli airstrikes" targeting its military base, labeling them an "unjustified act of aggression" and calling for action from the United Nations Security Council.

Despite the escalating tensions between the neighboring countries, Israel and Syria's new government have held direct talks on multiple occasions and previously agreed to establish an intelligence-sharing mechanism.

However, last week, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz stated that Israel plans to maintain its military presence inside Syria.

Israel seized most of the Golan Heights from Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War and later annexed the territory under its control.

In addition, the Israeli military has maintained a presence in a safety zone in southern Syria since the collapse of the Bashar al-Assad dictatorship in December 2024.

This area is the former UN-patrolled buffer zone established to separate Israeli and Syrian forces from Israel's existing occupation of the Golan Heights.

(Photo provided by the Israel Defense Forces, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.