United Nations personnel passed through a reopened crossing between Israel and Syria on Monday for the first time since the crossing was shuttered because of the civil war that had engulfed Syria for more than seven years.
The U.N. oversaw Monday's reopening ceremony of the Quneitra crossing in the Golan Heights. The crossing was closed in 2014 after rebel groups moved into the area, driving out the U.N. force.
Syrian forces recaptured the Quneitra area in July. The U.N. has been monitoring a military disengagement agreement between Israel and Syria since 1974. The reopened crossing will for now be used exclusively for U.N. forces, Israel's military said.
Israeli military spokesman Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus said the U.N. forces took up positions on the Israeli side and redeployed to headquarters on the Syrian side.
"We look to both Israel and Syria to provide U.N. peacekeepers the access they need as well as assurances of their safety. We also call on Syria to take the necessary steps so UNDOF can safely and effectively deploy and patrol without interference," U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said on Friday.
Earlier Monday, Jordan and Syria also reopened the Nasib border crossing, a vital gateway between the two countries, three years after the commercial lifeline fell to rebel groups and traffic was halted.
The reopening of both crossings is a major boost to the Syrian government, keen on sending messages to its citizens and the world that it is slowly emerging victorious from the bloody conflict and beginning to restore vital services and relations. In eastern Syria, state TV said its broadcast has returned to Deir ez-Zor city, seven years after it was halted when armed groups seized control of the area.
"We are fully ready to receive passengers and transport of goods," crossing manager Imad Riyalat said. "We expect the traffic to be slow now at the start, but in coming days we expect passenger movement to pick up."
Reopening the crossing with Jordan would bring major relief to President Bashar Assad's government by restoring a much-needed gateway for Syrian exports to Arab countries. It is also expected to boost its coffers as the government is expected to collect transit fees from convoys coming from Jordan. Last month, it hiked fees for all trailers transiting through its territories.
The resumption of commercial trade through the crossing will also be a diplomatic victory for Assad, whose government has been isolated from its Arab neighbors since the war began in 2011.
Arab countries have boycotted the Syrian government since the early days of the war, freezing its membership in the 22-member state Arab League.
Jordanian government spokeswoman Jumana Ghunaimat said Sunday that the Nasib crossing would be opened Monday after operational details have been agreed upon. Syria's Interior Minister Mohammed al-Shaar also confirmed the crossing's reopening, according to Syria's state news agency.
"The Nasib crossing is a vital lifeline for trade between the two brotherly countries Jordan and Syria through them to other Arab countries," Ghunaimat said, according to Petra.
Rebels seized the crossing in 2015, disrupting a major trade route between Syria and Jordan, Lebanon and oil-rich Gulf countries.
The two governments had earlier issued conflicting reports of when the crossing would open.
Syrian troops recaptured it in July this year after rebels reached an agreement with Russian mediators to end the violence in the southern province of Daraa and surrender the crossing.
The crossing is also vital for Syria's neighboring Lebanon, providing its agricultural products a route to foreign markets.
The recapture of Nasib crossing marked a major victory for Assad's forces, which have been on a winning streak since 2015 when Russia threw its military weight behind Damascus. The victory in southern Syria signaled the return of his forces to Daraa province where the uprising against him began seven years ago.
Fighting has subsided across most of Syria, but in the absence of a political deal, more than 40% of the country's territory remains in the hands of armed opposition and their foreign supporters
On Sunday, Israel's military announced that the United Nations has decided to return its peacekeeping force, known as UNDOF, to the Quneitra crossing area. The crossing will be used exclusively for U.N. forces, it added.
The Syrian government said it plans to escort media to the crossing Monday.
