Israeli troops continue to move deeper into Syria, raising consternation among the locals as they detain civilians on suspicion of “terrorism” and set up roadblocks to prevent villagers from accessing their lands inside the newly occupied “buffer zone.”
That “buffer zone” is getting bigger and bigger, crossing beyond the demilitarized zone between Syria and the occupied Golan Heights, and as a result is also shrinking the amount of land local residents are allowed to access.
Israel invaded in December, after the ouster of the Assad government, and its ever-expanding occupation has shown increasing signs of being more or less permanent. Though the Syrians involved are viewing it in the lens of an occupation, the Israeli Army is looking to brand it as a festive opportunity for Israelis to travel during Passover.
The Israeli Army is now offering hiking tours of some of the newly-occupied part of Syria, calling them “Friends of Excursions” trips where Israeli forces will escort Israeli hikers into the closest 2.5 kilometers of Syria.
It may sound unusual, but reportedly the tours for Passover were very popular, and have sold out already. Israel’s Northern Command say more such tours may be offered in the future, assuming the security situation allows.
On a less celebrative front, the IDF announced paratroopers are carrying out “defensive operations” on Sunday inside Syria, destroying infrastructure, dismantling old, abandoned Syrian military assets like tanks and artillery pieces, and confiscating the shells and other associated equipment.
Israel has warned Syria that they are not allowed to have any military forces inside the Quneitra, Daraa or Suwayda Governorates, and has used the existence of such assets, even old abandoned equipment or unoccupied bases built decades before as one of the pretexts for their continued attacks.
