In recent days, Israeli military officers have held their first meetings with leaders of Syrian villages captured in the Golan Heights following the collapse of Bashar Assad’s regime last week. The officers met openly with village elders in their homes to reassure them that no harm would come to residents and that their daily lives would continue undisturbed.
Capt. Omer, a company commander from the 77th Battalion of the 7th Armored Brigade, reached the deepest point of the IDF’s advance in Syria so far, the village of Umm Batnah, located approximately 12 kilometers (8 miles) from the border. “I asked the village elder to collect weapons from residents after they had taken rifles from abandoned Syrian military outposts,” the officer said. According to the IDF, the residents have complied, and no unusual incidents have been reported.
The IDF is currently operating in seven villages in the Syrian Golan, some beyond Quneitra. Over the weekend, troops reportedly reached abandoned Assad regime military outposts near the town of Khan Arnabah. The IDF intends to remain in the area until the territory can be handed over to an "established and defined state entity" to prevent terrorist groups from seizing control.
In videos circulated online over the weekend, Druze residents in the village of Hader, near the Israeli border in southern Syria, were heard calling on Israel to annex them. “What is our fate?” one speaker asked, prompting the crowd to respond, “Israel.”
The speaker continued, “On behalf of everyone in Hader, if we must choose, we choose the lesser evil. We want to be annexed to the Israeli Golan to preserve our dignity. This applies to all villages in the area because the fate of Hader is the fate of the entire region. We ask to join our people in the Golan and live in freedom and dignity.”
Residents of the Druze village of Hader in southern Syria call to be annexed to Israel
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Ahmad al-Sharaa, the Syrian rebel leader formerly known by his call sign Abu Mohammed al-Golani, addressed Israel for the first time on Saturday, rejecting the country's involvement in Syria.
Speaking in a televised statement in the wake of Israel’s series of strikes on Syrian territory and its occupation of the buffer zone near the Golan Heights, Sharaa said, “Syria needs laws and state institutions. We have a plan to address all the crises, and we are gathering information. We are not entering into conflict with Israel.”
Sharaa 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.
Sharaa 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, Sharaa emphasized, “We have entered our cities—not Tehran. We have no issue with the Iranian people.”
Shortly later, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi dismissed Sharaa’s claims that Israel has no justification for its involvement in Syria, saying that the IDF's actions along the border are solely to ensure Israel's security.
Halevi, speaking during a situational assessment on the Golan Heights with senior military officials, said, “We are not interfering in what is happening inside Syria, nor do we intend to govern it. However, we are unequivocally involved in ensuring the security of Israeli citizens living in communities behind us in the Golan Heights. This is something we are handling with professionalism, determination and precision.
“Syria was once an enemy state; its army has collapsed, and there is a real threat that terrorist elements will try to establish themselves near our border. We have acted decisively to prevent extremist groups from settling right next to us."
Halevi also praised the IDF’s preparations along the border, which stretch from Mount Hermon to the Israel-Syria-Jordan tri-border area. “The readiness here is solid and effective,” he said, urging commanders to continue adapting to emerging threats. “Make the necessary changes—you have all the IDF resources and an excellent force at your disposal.”
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.”