Egypt on Monday condemned continued Israeli incursions into Syria and called for Israel to withdraw from occupied Syrian territory.
– In a statement, the Foreign Ministry strongly condemned continued Israeli violations of Syrian sovereignty, including the resumption of excavation and military construction work in the Quneitra countryside and incursions into other areas of southern Syria.
– The ministry rejected Israeli moves and measures that aim at “imposing a new reality on the ground” in Syria.
– It said the Israeli actions constitute “a flagrant violation of Syria’s sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity, international law and the 1974 disengagement agreement.”
– The ministry stressed the need to respect Syria’s sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity and called for Israel to withdraw from occupied Syrian territory.
– Israel on Sunday resumed excavation work as part of the “Sufa 53” project in the southern Quneitra countryside, while Israeli forces carried out incursions Saturday into the villages of Saida al-Golan and Abdin in western Daraa countryside.
– Israel began the project, also known as the “Great Storm,” in mid-2022 near the town of Hader in northern Quneitra before expanding it across several areas of the province.
– The project’s expansion has rendered thousands of acres of agricultural land in the Quneitra countryside unsuitable for farming and grazing and affected water flows and the area’s natural landscape, according to previous accounts from local residents.
– Since the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime on Dec. 8, 2024, Israel has expanded its military operations in Syria, with its forces advancing into the demilitarized buffer zone in the occupied Golan Heights and nearby positions.
– Syria has demanded that Israeli forces withdraw from territories they occupied and reaffirmed its commitment to the 1974 disengagement agreement, while Israel claims its actions are driven by security considerations.