The Saudi outlet al-Hadath quoted a security official claiming Israel has captured the Syrian part of Mount Hermon, the strategic mountain overlooking the Golan Heights, the Galilee, and the Damascus area.
This is the first time Israel has been on that part of the mountain since the 1974 Disengagement of Forces agreement, which was signed after the Yom Kippur War.
According to reports, soldiers from Sayeret Shaldag, the Israeli Air Force's elite commando unit, were responsible for the capture of the Syrian side of Mount Hermon. The soldiers are now preparing defensive positions at the site.
The IDF has emphasized that "the Israeli military does not intervene in events taking place in Syria and will continue to act as required to maintain the buffer zone and protect the State of Israel and its citizens."
Earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz visited Mount Bental in the Golan Heights at an observation point overlooking the Syrian border following the collapse of Bashar al-Assad's regime. During the visit, they received a detailed briefing on developments along the Syrian border and the reinforcement of IDF forces in the area.
Netanyahu characterized the event as "a historic day in Middle East history," claiming that the regime's "collapse is the direct result of our forceful action against Hezbollah and Iran, Assad's main supporters." He emphasized that the regime's collapse "set off a chain reaction of all those who want to free themselves from this tyranny and its oppression."
