The Jewish state’s actions in Syria are “a source of grave concern,” Ankara has said
Türkiye has condemned Israel after it said it intends to double the number of Jewish settlements in the occupied Golan Heights in order to fend off “potential threats.”
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) invaded the buffer zone between Syria and the Golan Heights earlier this month, following the collapse of the government of Bashar Assad in Damascus to Hayat Tahrir-al-Sham (HTS) and other militant groups.
On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that his cabinet had approved a plan to expand the Jewish population in the illegally occupied area, saying that doing so is vital for Israel’s security.
“We will continue to hold onto it, cause it to blossom, and settle in it,” Netanyahu said of the Golan Heights.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Monday that the decision by Netanyahu’s government “is a new stage in Israel’s goal of expanding its borders through occupation.”
“This step by Israel is a source of grave concern, taken together with Israel’s entry into the area of separation in violation of the 1974 Disengagement Agreement, its advance into adjacent areas and airstrikes in Syria,” the statement read.
Besides advancing in the area of the Golan Heights, the IDF has been bombing airfields, anti-aircraft batteries, and arms depots across Syria to prevent weapons from falling into the hands of HTS and other armed groups, some of which are backed by Türkiye.
“Israel’s ongoing actions seriously undermine the efforts to bring peace and stability to Syria and further increase tensions in the region,” the Turkish Foreign Ministry said.
Ankara has also urged the international community to “take the appropriate measures in response to Israel’s actions and ensure an end to the illegal steps of the Netanyahu government.”
The Golan Heights, which had been part of Syria’s Quneitra Province, were seized by Israel during the 1967 Six-Day War, and were unilaterally annexed in 1981.
West Jerusalem’s claim to the region is rejected by all members of the international community, except the US. Washington officially recognized the Golan Heights as being under the sovereignty of Israel in 2019 under President Donald Trump.
READ MORE: Qatar to re-open embassy in Syria
Around 20,000 Jewish settlers currently live in the Golan Heights, which is also home to around the same number of Syrian Druze. Some 30 Jewish settlements in the area are considered illegal under international law.
