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| Israel plans to expand Golan settlements after fall of Assad | Israel plans to expand Golan settlements after fall of Assad |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Israel's government has approved a plan to encourage the expansion of settlements in the occupied Golan Heights. | Israel's government has approved a plan to encourage the expansion of settlements in the occupied Golan Heights. |
| Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the move was necessary because a "new front" had opened up on Israel's border with Syria after the fall of the Assad regime to an Islamist-led rebel alliance. | Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the move was necessary because a "new front" had opened up on Israel's border with Syria after the fall of the Assad regime to an Islamist-led rebel alliance. |
| Netanyahu said he wanted to double the population of the Golan Heights, which Israel seized during the 1967 Six-Day War and is considered illegally occupied under international law. | Netanyahu said he wanted to double the population of the Golan Heights, which Israel seized during the 1967 Six-Day War and is considered illegally occupied under international law. |
| Israeli forces moved into a buffer zone separating the Golan Heights from Syria in the days following Assad's departure, saying the change of control in Damascus meant ceasefire arrangements had "collapsed". | Israeli forces moved into a buffer zone separating the Golan Heights from Syria in the days following Assad's departure, saying the change of control in Damascus meant ceasefire arrangements had "collapsed". |
| Despite the move, Netanyahu said in a statement on Sunday evening that Israel has "no interest in a conflict with Syria". | |
| "We will determine Israeli policy regarding Syria according to the reality on the ground," he said. | |
| There are more than 30 Israeli settlements in the Golan Heights, which are home to an estimated 20,000 people. They are considered illegal under international law, which Israel disputes. | There are more than 30 Israeli settlements in the Golan Heights, which are home to an estimated 20,000 people. They are considered illegal under international law, which Israel disputes. |
| The settlers live alongside some 20,000 Syrians, most of them Druze Arabs who did not flee when the area came under Israeli control. | The settlers live alongside some 20,000 Syrians, most of them Druze Arabs who did not flee when the area came under Israeli control. |
| Netanyahu said Israel would "continue to hold on to [the territory], make it flourish and settle it". | Netanyahu said Israel would "continue to hold on to [the territory], make it flourish and settle it". |
| The announcement comes a day after Syria's new de-facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa criticised Israel for its ongoing strikes on military targets in the country, which have reportedly targeted military facilities. | The announcement comes a day after Syria's new de-facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa criticised Israel for its ongoing strikes on military targets in the country, which have reportedly targeted military facilities. |
| The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) has documented more than 450 Israeli air strikes in Syria since 8 December, including 75 since Saturday evening. | The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) has documented more than 450 Israeli air strikes in Syria since 8 December, including 75 since Saturday evening. |
| Al-Sharaa - also known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani - said the strikes "crossed red lines" and risked escalating tensions in the region, though he said Syria was not seeking a conflict with any neighbouring state. | Al-Sharaa - also known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani - said the strikes "crossed red lines" and risked escalating tensions in the region, though he said Syria was not seeking a conflict with any neighbouring state. |
| Speaking to Syria TV, which was seen as pro-opposition during the civil war, al-Sharaa said the country's "war-weary condition, after years of conflict and war, does not allow for new confrontations", Reuters reported. | Speaking to Syria TV, which was seen as pro-opposition during the civil war, al-Sharaa said the country's "war-weary condition, after years of conflict and war, does not allow for new confrontations", Reuters reported. |
| The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has not commented on his remarks, but previously said the strikes were necessary to stop weapons falling "into the hands of extremists". | The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has not commented on his remarks, but previously said the strikes were necessary to stop weapons falling "into the hands of extremists". |
| Ahmed al-Sharaa addressed a crowd inside the Umayyad Mosque, in Damascus, shortly after rebel fighters captured the Syrian capital on 8 December | Ahmed al-Sharaa addressed a crowd inside the Umayyad Mosque, in Damascus, shortly after rebel fighters captured the Syrian capital on 8 December |
| President Bashar al-Assad and his family fled to Russia and took up asylum when al-Sharaa's Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) led other rebel factions in a lightning offensive on Damascus. | President Bashar al-Assad and his family fled to Russia and took up asylum when al-Sharaa's Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) led other rebel factions in a lightning offensive on Damascus. |
| The groups are continuing to form a transitional government in Syria, of which al-Sharaa is the theoretical head. | The groups are continuing to form a transitional government in Syria, of which al-Sharaa is the theoretical head. |
| On Saturday, the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Washington had made direct contact with HTS, which the US and other Western governments still designates as a terrorist organisation. | On Saturday, the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Washington had made direct contact with HTS, which the US and other Western governments still designates as a terrorist organisation. |
| From Syrian jihadist leader to rebel politician: How Abu Mohammed al-Jolani reinvented himself | From Syrian jihadist leader to rebel politician: How Abu Mohammed al-Jolani reinvented himself |
| United Nations' Syria envoy Geir Pedersen said on Sunday he hoped for a swift end to sanctions on the country to help facilitate an economic recovery. | United Nations' Syria envoy Geir Pedersen said on Sunday he hoped for a swift end to sanctions on the country to help facilitate an economic recovery. |
| "We will hopefully see a quick end to sanctions so that we can see really rallying around building up Syria," Pedersen said as he arrived in Damascus to meet Syria's caretaker government and other officials. | "We will hopefully see a quick end to sanctions so that we can see really rallying around building up Syria," Pedersen said as he arrived in Damascus to meet Syria's caretaker government and other officials. |
| Elsewhere, Turkey's Defence Minister Yasar Guler said Ankara was ready to provide military support to Syria's new government. | Elsewhere, Turkey's Defence Minister Yasar Guler said Ankara was ready to provide military support to Syria's new government. |
| "It is necessary to see what the new administration will do. We think it is necessary to give them a chance," Guler said of HTS, according to state news agency Anadolu and other Turkish media outlets. | "It is necessary to see what the new administration will do. We think it is necessary to give them a chance," Guler said of HTS, according to state news agency Anadolu and other Turkish media outlets. |