Fresh clashes in the southwestern border region between and killed at least six Syrians, Syria’s Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday.
As of now, however, it remains unclear if those killed belonged to an armed group or if they were armed civilians from the Daraa Governorate in southern Syria.
According to the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), their troops returned fire after being attacked.
Israeli troops have been stationed inside a previously UN-controlled buffer zone since the ousting of Syria’s long-term dictator in December.
Israel initially said that stationing troops there was necessary in order to while there wasn’t a functioning Syrian government. But since then, Israeli officials have said troops will remain there permanently.
“Israel has severely infringed international law and not just by capturing Syrian land and illegally holding it,” Andreas Krieg, a senior lecturer at the School of Security Studies at King’s College London,
“Israel has also been using military force inside of Syria against targets that do not directly pose a threat to Israel at this point,” he added.
Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, warned on Tuesday during a visit to Israel that Israel’s strikes into Syria “risk further escalation.”
“And we (the EU) feel that these things are unnecessary, because Syria is right now not attacking Israel,” Kallas said at a joint press conference with Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar.
However, officially, Israel has said that it is not only ensuring its security by targeting military bases and ammunition left by the Assad-regime, but that it is also protecting .
Politicizing Syria’s minorities
Syria’s roughly 25-million-strong population has a varied background, with multiple , some of which are still divided by years of dictatorship and civil war.
According to Andreas Krieg, it is an open secret that different foreign interests are promoting those divisions to further their own agendas.
“We’ve seen the Russians pushing narratives against [the rebel militia] Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or , trying to ‘protect’ Christians over Christmas. We’ve seen the Iranians saying they’re the ‘protectors of the Shia’ in Syria and Israel is doing the same thing by saying we’re here to ‘defend’ the Druze,” the analyst said.
The Druze community is a small Middle Eastern religious sect characterized by an eclectic system of doctrines. An estimated 150,000 Druze in Israel hold Israeli citizenship, regularly serve in the army and are considered fiercely loyal to the state of Israel.
In Syria, around 700,000 Druze make up one of Syria’s largest minority communities. They have pressed the new Syrian government to uphold minority rights.
And although there are different factions and opinions within Syria’s Druze community, observers say the majority reject Israel’s “protection.”
So far, Syria’s interim government — led by President Ahmad al-Sharaa who used to head HTS, the militia that toppled Assad and his regime — has vowed to focus on . Al-Sharaa has also repeatedly said that all Syria’s ethnic or religious minorities, like the country’s , Christians, Druze and Alawites, should be in running the country.
However, according to Krieg, the last thing Israel wants is, “an inclusive government in Syria that can potentially stabilize the country to an extent that they would have the capabilities to fight back against Israel.”
Trita Parsi, executive vice president of the Washington-based Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, wrote in a post on social media platform X earlier in March that Israel has long practiced what is known as its “periphery doctrine,” where it seeks out alliances with non-Muslim minorities, like the Druze, and countries around the region in order to bolster its own security.
Israeli security interests
Experts say the divisive statements about also tie into the other part of Israeli strategy in Syria, which involves its troops on the ground.
This may have positive short-term results but won’t lead to long-term security, Andreas Krieg said.
“Israel sees itself as still surrounded by enemies,” the military analyst explained. “In their minds, since 1948 when Israel was created, they’ve been fighting a war against all their neighbors. So there is no trust … [and] instead of engaging with [Syria’s] new leadership, Israel is again betting on confrontation.”
However, as of now, Syria’s interim president al-Sharaa reiterated this week that he does not intend to open a front against .
Edited by: Rob Mudge
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