Israel seizes Syrian Army outpost at the summit of Mount Hermon after Assad flees

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers on Sunday (Dec 8) captured a strategic Syrian Army outpost at the summit of Mount Hermon in the Golan Heights in the wake of the fall of the Assad regime in the West Asian nation, Israeli state media reported.

The Israeli Armyhad earlier on Sunday saidit was progressing into the buffer zone, a demilitarised area in the Golan Heights.

The move, it said, was aimed at preventing rebel forces from seizing control of the area and launching potential attacks on Israel.

Add WION as a Preferred Source

Netanyahu says ordered army to capture Syria buffer zone as pact had collapsed

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday (Dec 8) said that he had ordered his military to capture the demilitarised buffer zone on the border with Syria after the fall of Bashar al-Assad in Damascus.

He said that a "disengagement agreement", that dated back to 50 years between the two countries had collapsed and "Syrian forces have abandoned their positions".

"I directed the IDF (military) yesterday to seize the buffer zone and the commanding positions nearby. We will not allow any hostile force to establish itself on our border."

On Sunday, the army announced a troop deployment there, citing "the possible entry of armed individuals into the buffer zone".

"Following the recent events in Syria... the IDF (military) has deployed forces in the buffer zone and in several other places necessary for its defence, to ensure the safety of the communities of the Golan Heights and the citizens of Israel," a military statement said.

Israeli forces "will continue to operate as long as necessary in order to preserve the buffer zone and defend Israel", it added.

Israel strikes weapons depot in Damascus

Israel also launched an airstrike on a weapons depot in Damascus, reported news agency Reuters citing China Global Television Network (CGTN).

A CGTN reporter shot a video that showed how the Israeli military struck the weapon facility to prevent it from falling into the hands of Syrian rebel forces who have "anti-Israeli sentiments".

"As we can see here, it looks like that the Israelis, they don't want the weapons of the Syrian military to be looted or to be scattered in hands of rebels because now they don't know who the weapons here are. There are people from everywhere, everywhere who's carrying a weapon, a light weapon is considered a rebel,"said Hydar Kazwini.

"So the Israelis don't know the orientation of them. They don't know their objectives, whether they are rebels, they have anti-Israeli sentiments. So they're striking all the maybe cutting-edge weapons that can be found when the Syrian military evacuated places. They are just preventing those weapons from reaching to the Syrian rebels,"

Disclaimer: WION takes utmost care to accurately and responsibly report conflicts in West Asia involving Israel, Iran, Syria, Iraq and non-state actors like Islamic State, among others. In this context, claims and counterclaims are being made online and offline. WION cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, social media posts, photos and videos.

(With inputs from agencies)