'Iran-linked terrorist cell' apprehended in Syria claims Israeli Military
An Israeli soldier stands at a lookout point in the Israel-annexed Golan Heights overlooking south Syria Photograph: (AFP)
In a night raid near Syria's Quneitra region, Israeli troops apprehended three Palestinians allegedly linked to Iran. The operation follows heightened tensions and an earlier 12-day war, as Israel signals interest in peace talks with Syria and Lebanon.
The Israeli Military on Wednesday said that it had apprehended members of a terrorist cell in southern Syria. Since the overthrow of Syria's longtime ruler, Bashar al-Assad, Israel has carried out hundreds of military and air strikes on military sites. The Syrian state TV said three were arrested, linked to Iran by the Israeli Troops. Israel's arch-foe against which it had fought an unprecedented 12-day war last month.
An Israeli military statement on Wednesday said that in a "targeted night-time" raid, troops "apprehended several terrorists," and seized weapons. Syrian state TV said an Israeli patrol "consisting of eight vehicles and around 40 soldiers arrested three individuals from the village of Al-Bassali" in the Quneitra area of southwest Syria bordering the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. These three were reportedly of Palestinian origin. According to the Syrian TV, they were inside the firm at the time of the incident and were arrested without any resistance. Since the fall of Assad, Israel has established a military presence on the other side of the armistice line that was the opposing forces on the Golan.
On June 12, Syria said that Israel killed one civilian and arrested seven people during an overnight incursion, with the Israeli army saying it seized members of the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
Israel said Monday it was "interested" in striking normalisation agreements with Syria and neighbouring Lebanon, but insisted the strategic Golan Heights, which Israel seized from Syria in 1967 and later annexed in a move not recognised by the United Nations, would "remain part of" Israel under any peace accord.
The latest incident shows the ongoing volatility of the Israel-Syria border, specifically the Golan Heights region. Israel had continued to target what it calls Iranian-backed militant infrastructure in Syria. While Syria had accused Israel of repeatedly violating its sovereignty. The deep-rooted hostilities and territorial expansion plan of Israel keep any hope of lasting peace at bay.