Israel Defense Forces soldiers detained a terrorist cell in southern Syria operated by the Quds Force of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the military announced on Monday.
Following intelligence obtained through interrogations conducted by the IDF’s Human Intelligence Unit 504, the 3rd Alexandroni Brigade carried out an overnight operation and arrested the cell in the Tel Kudne area.
The Israeli military is continuing operations in Syrian territory, including near the Mount Hermon summit, even as discussions of a potential diplomatic detente between Jerusalem and the new regime in Damascus gain traction.
In a recent mission, an IDF reserve battalion from the 810th Brigade, under the command of the 210th Division, together with members of the elite Yahalom Unit, dismantled several former Syrian military outposts. According to the IDF, these positions formed the enemy’s forward line and posed a direct threat to Israeli forces in the Hermon sector.
The military stressed that these ongoing operations in southern Syria are intended to protect Israeli citizens, especially those living in the Golan Heights.
Syria’s new governing authority on Friday claimed a willingness to work with the United States to reimplement the 1974 disengagement agreement with Israel, which created a U.N.-monitored buffer zone separating the two countries.
Also last week, Israel Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said that Israel is committed to expanding the Abraham Accords and is “interested in adding countries such as Syria and Lebanon, our neighbors, to the circle of peace and normalization,” while making clear that Israel will continue to safeguard its essential and security interests.