Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz visited Mount Hermon, inside what was once the UNDOF-controlled “demilitarized zone” in southwest Syria, but which is presently presented as a “buffer zone” entirely under Israeli military occupation. That occupation, according to Katz, will be open-ended.
Israel invaded and occupied the demilitarized zone in December of 2024, immediately following the ouster of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. At the time, Israel was presenting it as preventing any “hostile forces” gaining control of the area.
Now, Katz is framing the Islamist government within Syria as a “jihadist threat,” and saying that so long as that government stands, Israeli troops will remain within the “buffer zone” He also accused Turkey of posing a threat to Israel, citing that as the reason Israel attacked a northern Syria airbase last week.
Israeli DM Israel Katz and US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth
Katz’s narrative is a familiar one among Israeli governments, framing their assorted military offensives and occupations as inherently defensive in nature, and done solely to defend their homeland which, engaged as it is in offensive wars against myriad neighbors, perceives itself to be in constant peril.
Syria’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement condemning Katz’s position, saying the occupation of the 1974 disengagement area amounted to a clear violation of international law, and that further incursions Israel has launched daily deeper into Syria since then are repeated violations of Syrian national sovereignty.
Syria engaged in months of negotiations with Israel in 2025 trying to resolve the situation, and despite repeatedly claims of progress, no agreement was ever finalized. Israel, for its part, continues to cross into southwest Syria daily, beyond the buffer zone, and intermittently attacks villages and detains civilians living in the Daraa and Quneitra Governorates. No negotiations are confirmed to be taking place any longer between Israel and Syria, and Katz’s comments suggest the status quo is, as with the Golan Heights, just permanent military occupation.
