Golani says his forces won’t enter conflict with Israel, claiming it has no justification in Syria after Iran’s exit; Syria’s interim government urges UN Security Council to demand Israel withdraw from Golan buffer zone and halt airstrikes in Syria
Abu Mohammed al-Golani, leader of the Syrian rebel faction formerly known as Jabhat al-Nusra, addressed Israel for the first time since the fall of Bashar Assad’s regime on Saturday, rejecting the country’s involvement in Syria.
Golani claimed Israel has no justification for involvement in Syria following the departure of Iranian forces. “What happened is a victory over the Iranian plan, which threatened the entire region,” he said.
Golani also suggested his faction could have targeted Russian bases in Syria but opted instead to “build good relations.”
Despite his criticism of the Iranian regime, Golani emphasized, “We have entered our cities—not Tehran. We have no issue with the Iranian people.”
Meanwhile, Syria’s interim government called on the UN Security Council to take action to compel Israel to immediately stop its attacks on Syrian territory and withdraw from areas it has penetrated in the north “in violation of the 1974 Disengagement Agreement.”
In identical letters to the council and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres obtained Friday by The Associated Press, Syria’s UN Ambassador Koussay Aldahhak said he was acting “on instructions from my government” in making the demands. It appeared to be the first letter to the UN from Syria’s new interim government.
“At a time when the Syrian Arab Republic is witnessing a new phase in its history in which its people aspire to establish a state of freedom, equality and the rule of law and to achieve their hopes for prosperity and stability, the Israeli occupation army has penetrated additional areas of Syrian territory in Mount Hermon and Quneitra Governorate,” ambassador Aldahhak wrote.
Israel still controls the Golan Heights that it captured from Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War. The Disengagement Agreement ending the 1973 war between Israel and Syria established a demilitarized buffer zone between the two countries, monitored by a UN peacekeeping force known as UNDOF.
In a letter to the Security Council circulated Friday which was also written on Dec. 9, Israel’s UN Ambassador Danny Danon said his country had taken “limited and temporary measures,” deploying troops temporarily in the separation area “to prevent armed groups from threatening Israeli territory.”