United Nations, March 5 (IANS) A UN special envoy has strongly condemned Israel’s military escalations in Syria, including airstrikes, calling for an end to violations and refraining from exacerbating conflict.
“Such actions are unacceptable and risk further destabilising an already fragile situation, heightening regional tensions, and undermining efforts toward de-escalation and a sustainable political transition in line with key principles of Security Council resolution 2254 (2015),” Geir Pedersen, the UN special envoy for Syria, warned on Tuesday in a statement.
Pedersen said he remained “deeply concerned” by Israel’s continued violations of the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement.
The special envoy called on Israel to cease violations, uphold its international obligations, and refrain from unilateral measures that exacerbate conflict.
Pedersen urged all parties to respect Syria’s sovereignty, unity, independence, and territorial integrity.
“Constructive dialogue and strict adherence to international agreements and international law are essential for security in Syria and the broader region,” he said.
Israel launched airstrikes on Monday night targeting a Syrian air defence battalion near the western coastal city of Tartus, Syrian state media reported.
Israel also sent troops into a UN-patrolled buffer zone that has separated Israeli and Syrian forces on the strategic Golan Heights since 1974.
A spokesperson for the Israeli military confirmed that the Israel Defense Forces had struck a military site in Qardaha, a town near Tartus, adding that the attacks were in response to “recent developments in the region”.
It was the latest Israeli attack in Syria, where, following the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s government, Israel has deployed ground forces and conducted airstrikes.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said last month that southern Syria must be completely demilitarised, warning that his government would not accept the presence of the forces of the new Syrian-led government near its territory.
Even before Assad’s fall, during Syria’s civil war which broke out in 2011, Israel carried out hundreds of strikes in the neighbouring country, mainly on government forces and Iranian-linked targets.
The same day Assad was ousted, Israel said its troops were entering the UN-patrolled buffer zone on the Golan Heights.
Israel seized much of the Golan Heights from Syria in a war in 1967, later annexing the area in a move largely unrecognised by the international community.
–IANS
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