Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz announced on Tuesday that Israel will not withdraw from Mount Hermon or a buffer zone inside Syrian territory as long as threats to the country persist. The remarks were made during a visit to the area, according to a statement from his office.
“We will not leave Mount Hermon or the security zone as long as there are jihadist threats to the State of Israel,” Katz emphasized.
Addressing Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa directly, he stated: “The message to the president of Syria is clear — when you wake up in the morning in the palace in Damascus and look up at Mount Hermon and see the IDF, you know that we are here to defend our communities and our border.”
There was no immediate response from Syrian authorities to Katz’s comments.
The Israeli army seized control of the buffer zone late last year, a move Damascus described as a violation of the 1974 Disengagement Agreement between the two nations.
Israel has occupied most of the Golan Heights since 1967.
Following the collapse of the Bashar al-Assad regime in late 2024, Israel declared the Disengagement Agreement null and void, taking control of the buffer zone and other positions, including the Syrian side of Mount Hermon.