According to local sources, the Israelis moved tanks across the border into Syrian territory from the Golan Heights just hours after the astonishing collapse of the Assad regime in Syria. The reported incursion comes at a time when a power vacuum has been created by the sudden fall of Bashar al-Assad amidst a potentially explosive development in the already chaotic region.
Unverified reports said that Israeli forces, before dawn on Sunday, entered the UN-designated buffer zone in the Quneitra area. Witnesses in the area spoke about heavy artillery fire, which they said the Israeli military launched. Videos on social media showed what seemed to be plumes of smoke rising from the region; reports remain unverified.
The IDF has so far declined to comment on the allegations, thus giving cause for much speculation over what exactly is going on on the ground. This incident is so murky that regional observers and international stakeholders are now scrambling to piece together exactly what happens amidst a highly tense and uncertain environment.
A Tense Borderland: Quneitra
The Quneitra area is situated on the border between Syria and the Golan Heights, which Israel seized during the 1967 Six-Day War and then annexed in a decision that was not widely accepted by the international community. With occasional cross-border confrontations throughout the years, the region has long been a hot spot for hostility between the two countries.
The United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF), which keeps watch over the Quneitra buffer zone, has been rather calm in recent years. However, the collapse of Syria’s central government has raised fears of renewed instability in the region. Local residents in Quneitra have reported seeing military vehicles moving along the border and hearing explosions throughout the day.
One resident told a Middle Eastern news outlet, “We saw tanks moving across the border early this morning, and then we heard the sound of artillery. Many families are attempting to flee the neighborhood since people are so afraid here.”
The Golan Heights, which has been relatively tranquil in comparison to other regions of Syria during the country’s protracted civil conflict, might attract worldwide attention if the rumors are true. This would be a substantial escalation.
A Vacuum of Power and Local Opportunism
Syria is extremely vulnerable at the moment of the claimed Israeli assault. The Assad family’s 54-year dynasty came to an end overnight when opposition troops took over Damascus. According to reports, President Bashar al-Assad left the capital just hours before opposition forces arrived, leaving behind a disorganized nation and a shattered military.
In their analyses, experts argue that different regional players will throw themselves into vying for Syria’s future in the power vacuum the regime’s collapse has left. For a long time, Israel has been considering that Iran’s presence in Syria posed a direct threat against its security; now, it has been searching for strategic positions in the borderland. Israel has conducted hundreds of airstrikes in Syria in the past 10 years against Iranian militias and the Hezbollahs operating under the cover of the government of Assad.
“This might be an all prudent action by Israel to prevent its opponents from taking advantage of the chaos,” a Beirut-located regional security expert said. The timing is significant-this might be Israel acting now to prevent Hezbollah or even remnant forces of Assad from regrouping in areas close to the Golan Heights.
But then, there are also critics of the supposed invasion, with some claiming that Israel is capitalizing on the internal conflicts in Syria. A political analyst in Damascus who did not want to be named for fear of reprisal had this to say, “If these reports are confirmed, this is egregious violation of sovereignty of Syria: it sends out a very dangerous signal that foreign powers feel emboldened to act unilaterally without accountability.”
The scope of alleged Israeli military operations in Quneitra will undoubtedly be placed under hard focus around the world. Until now the UN has not commented, but through its leadership of the demilitarized zone between Syria and the Golan Heights, UNDOF, is reporting to be closely watching the situation.
The claimed incursion is, in turn, a possibility of escalating hostilities between Israel and its Arab neighbours, particularly, Iran and Lebanon. In Tehran, state media berated Israel for what it termed “offensive activity” and threatened consequences if the allegations are proved correct. Its Israeli counterpart, Israel Missile Defence Organisation, has issued an official statement following the events, which is awaited for by Hezbollah, the Lebanese militia, which is already recognised as one of the main allies of Iran, presence in Syria of long standing, potentially taking part in the conflict if the situation in Syria will not be improved.
The US and Russia, whose involvement has been central alongside Syria’s has been key to its conflict, are likely to have a close interest in the same. While Washington has historically supported Israel’s right to defend itself, it is unclear how the Biden administration would respond to an overt Israeli military operation in Syria during such a sensitive period. Russia, a key backer of the Assad regime which did not acknowledge the information, continues to maintain forces in Syrian lines, including along the Quneitra area.
Waiting for Clarity
As of now, the situation in Quneitra remains murky. As yet, the specific detail and scale of the alleged incursion before verification by either the Israeli government or independent witnesses cannot be determined. Nevertheless, those reports have already imposed yet another layer of confusion onto a country still struggling with the legacy of decades of warfare and the shattering of its government.
Survival is the top concern for inhabitants of Quneitra and its vicinity. “We are caught between the rebels, the Israelis, and whoever else might come next,” said one resident. “We just want peace, but it feels like that’s further away than ever.”
With the dust settling up on the fall of Damascus, the Golan Heights will be in everyone’s gaze and the crisis in southern Syria is unfolding. True or false, these accounts cast a long shadow of another period of civil war over a country already scarred with nearly two decades of destruction.
