(Reuters) -Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Israeli troops deployed in southern Syria, drawing strong condemnation from the government in Damascus, which denounced the trip as a violation of sovereignty.
Israel expanded its military presence in southern Syria after the ousting of Bashar al-Assad last December, seizing positions east of a U.N.-patrolled buffer zone that separates the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights from Syrian territory.
Wearing a flak jacket and helmet, Netanyahu on Wednesday visited troops on Syrian territory, according to photographs published by his office. He reiterated Israel’s commitment to protect Syria’s Druze minority, whose community straddles the border into northern Israel.
“We attach immense importance to our capability here, both defensive and offensive, safeguarding our Druze allies, and especially safeguarding the State of Israel and its northern border opposite the Golan Heights,” Netanyahu told the troops, according to a statement from his office.
“This is a mission that can develop at any moment, but we are counting on you,” he said.
The Islamist-led government in Damascus said Netanyahu’s visit was “a dangerous violation of Syrian sovereignty and unity,” and called it an attempt to “impose a fait accompli.”
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli government.
TALKS ON A SECURITY PACT
Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in a 1967 war and later annexed it, a move not recognised by most countries. Syria has demanded that Israel returns to the original buffer zone, but senior Israeli officials have said they will not relinquish the new posts.
For months, Syria has been in U.S.-brokered talks with Israel to reach a security pact that Damascus hopes will reverse Israel’s recent seizures of its land but that would fall far short of a full peace treaty.
The talks have faltered since Israel introduced a new demand to allow the opening of a “humanitarian corridor” to Syria’s southern province of Sweida. Syria rejected the request as a breach of its sovereignty.
A Syrian military official said the visit showed Israel was not willing to relinquish any territory.
“Netanyahu’s visit sends a message: we won’t withdraw from the areas we entered after December 8… Regardless of the security deal, its future or its fate, this is the message they’re sending Syria – that Israel is not willing to give up these outposts,” the official told Reuters.
The two countries have technically been at war since the creation of Israel in 1948, despite periodic armistices. Syria does not recognise the state of Israel.
Since Assad’s ousting, Israel has carried out unprecedented strikes on Syrian military assets including the defence ministry, sent troops into its south and lobbied the U.S. to keep Syria weak and decentralised.
(Writing by Nayera AbdallahEditing by Ros Russell)
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