The U.N. Security Council unanimously renewed the mandate for a long-standing peacekeeping force along the Israel-Syria border, though not without concerns from some members.
The U.N. Disengagement Observer Force, commonly known as UNDOF, was renewed on Monday for a six-month period, through the end of June 2026.
The entity, which is situated in the Golan Heights, was established following the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement between Israel and Syria. UNDOF holds a mandate to maintain the ceasefire and supervise the area of separation, which is a demilitarized buffer zone. It also has purview over the area of limitation, where Israeli and Syrian troops and equipment are present but restricted.
UNDOF has long been an afterthought, with Israel and Syria largely avoiding consequential military action against each other under the thumb of Syrian dictator Bashar Assad.
But with Assad’s deposing last December by U.N.-designated terrorist Ahmed al-Sharaa and the latter’s ascension to the Syrian presidency this year, the mission came into sharper focus, with more persistent Israeli strikes and military presence in Syria, intended by Jerusalem to stabilize the border region and repel threats.
The text of the mandate renewal approved on Monday, drafted jointly by the United States and Russia, says both Israel and Syria are obligated to “scrupulously and fully respect” the 1974 agreement, while calling on both parties to exercise maximum restraint, prevent breaches of the area of separation and the ceasefire breaches, and to use UNDOF’s liaison function.
“From the outset, we were clear that we were not seeking to introduce new language, but rather to shorten and consolidate existing text” to hone in on UNDOF’s core mandate, Tammy Bruce, Washington’s deputy U.N. ambassador, told the council.
But Dina Gilmutdinova, Russia’s senior counsellor to the United Nations, chastised violations of the 1974 Agreement by Israel, even as it voted for the renewal, expressing concerns about “the advances of Israel Defense Forces units deeper into Syrian territory, as well as indiscriminate strikes against the sovereign territory of the Syrian Arab Republic.”
Ibrahim Olabi, Syria’s U.N. ambassador, referred to Israeli presence in the Golan Heights as an occupation, and asked for UNDOF to be able to fulfil its mandate freely.
On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump said Washington and Jerusalem “have an understanding regarding Syria,” while declining to elaborate, as he hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his Mar-a-lago resort in Southeast Florida.
Al-Sharaa “has been with us all the way,” said Trump, adding that “I’m sure that Israel and him will get along,” and “I will try and make it so that they do get along.”
Netanyahu said it’s in Israel’s interest “to have a peaceful border with Syria.” At the same time, he noted that Israel wants “to secure our Druze friends” who have come under attack in southern Syria by rival tribes, noting that Al-Sharaa’s forces have failed to stop the attacks.
