Netanyahu says Israel demands ‘complete demilitarization’ of southern Syria

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that he was demanding the “complete demilitarization” of southern Syria, a shock announcement that his defense minister described as a “new policy” and that appeared to formalize Israel’s recent expansion into Syrian territory.
In a speech to Israeli military cadets, he said the Israel Defense Forces will remain inside Syria “indefinitely to protect our settlements and neutralize any threat.”
“Let it be clear — we will not allow HTS forces or the New Syrian Army to enter the area south of Damascus,” he said, referring to Hayʼat Tahrir al-Sham, the militant group presiding over Syria’s transition. “We demand the complete demilitarization of southern Syria in the Quneitra, Daraa and Suwayda provinces from the forces of the new regime.”In the months since rebels ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Israel has launched hundreds of airstrikes in the country, targeting what it said were weapons stocks and military installations. It has also broken through what is known as the “Alpha line,” a decades-old ceasefire boundary between the two countries, and has established military positions inside a United Nations-patrolled buffer zone and, in some cases, beyond.
Netanyahu visited the Syrian side of Mount Hermon in the Golan Heights in December, just days after Assad’s overthrow.
It was unclear whether the prime minister was referring Sunday to any specific military activity on the part of Syria’s new rulers. Their leader, and the country’s new interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, has said he is committed to upholding the 1974 agreement that created the demilitarized buffer zone between Israel and Syria.