Forces affiliated with President Bashar al-Assad’s regime recently took over an abandoned post of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) in the buffer zone along the Israel-Syria border, Channel 1 news reported Sunday night. According to the report, the UNDOF forces in the area have identified serious construction work at the site—where no military presence is allowed.
Israel wants UNDOF forces to keep reporting on the activities of the various militias in Syria as well, including pro-Iranian forces fighting for the Assad army.
The IDF said in response to the report on the works along the border that the army is “aware of what is going on and sees the infrastructure work in that post as a flagrant violation of the separation of forces agreements.”
“The IDF considers UNDOF responsible for monitoring and acting against military forces in the buffer zone, and is determined to prevent military consolidation in this area,” the statement said.
Meanwhile, the defense establishment estimated that the renewed fighting between the Syrian regime and the rebels near the Golan Heights border could lead to additional stray fire hitting Israeli territory, this only hours after a Patriot missile had been launched at an unmanned aircraft approaching from Syria.
The aircraft, which apparently belonged to the Assad regime, did not intend to arrive in Israel, apparently but Israel believes that as the days go by, fighting in the area will intensify and these incidents will increase.
Despite all of the above, the Israeli communities on the Golan Heights maintained their routine on Sunday, having received no special alerts from the army.