RIYADH: ֱ on Tuesday has strongly condemned Israeli incursions inside the Syrian border, calling “a flagrant violation of the sovereignty” of Syria.
“The Kingdom of ֱ expresses its strong condemnation and denunciation of the continuation of Israeli violations, its incursion into Syrian territories, and its interference in its internal affairs,” the Saudi Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
The ministry said this act is “a flagrant violation of the sovereignty” of Syria and international law.
It also violates “the disengagement agreement signed between Syria and Israel in 1974, which comes amid the tension in the situation in the Suweida Governorate.”
| تعرب المملكة العربية السعودية عن استنكارها وإدانتها الشديدين لاستمرار الانتهاكات الإسرائيلية، وتوغلها داخل الأراضي السورية، والتدخل في شؤونها الداخلية، وذلك في انتهاك صارخ لسيادة الجمهورية العربية السورية الشقيقة والقانون الدولي، واتفاق فض الاشتباك المبرم بين سوريا…
— وزارة الخارجية (@KSAMOFA)
Syria said on Monday that Israel had sent 60 soldiers to take control of an area inside the Syrian border around Mount Hermon.
The Syrian government said the operation violated its sovereignty and posed a further threat to regional security.
“This dangerous escalation is considered a direct threat to regional peace and security,” the Syrian foreign ministry said in a statement.
An Israeli military spokesperson said troops carried out a routine operational activity in an area of southern Syria but did not operate in Beit Jinn, an area close to the border with Lebanon and near Mount Hermon.
Monday's incident took place near a strategic hilltop that overlooks Beit Jinn, the Syrian ministry said. Israel also arrested six Syrians there, according to residents in the area cited by Reuters.
The incident comes as the two countries engage in US-mediated talks on de-escalating their conflict in southern Syria. Damascus hopes to reach a security arrangement that could eventually pave the way for broader political talks.
(with Reuters)
