IDF presence in Syria of ‘immense importance,’ Netanyahu tells troops during visit

Israel’s ongoing presence inside Syria is of “immense importance,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told troops during a Wednesday visit to an outpost in the IDF-held buffer zone there.

The visit, which included several top security and diplomatic officials, came as talks between Jerusalem and Damascus over a security agreement for southern Syria have stalled, with a senior Israeli official telling The Times of Israel on Wednesday that such a deal is “not in the cards right now.”

Israel is reportedly insisting on remaining deployed to the nine posts it seized after the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime in December 2024, unless the new ruling government agrees to a full peace deal and normalization.

“We attach immense importance to our capability here, both defensive and offensive,” Netanyahu told the troops during his visit, adding that the purpose includes “safeguarding our Druze allies, and especially safeguarding the State of Israel and its northern border opposite the Golan Heights.”

“This is a mission that can develop at any moment, but we are counting on you,” he said.

Reacting to the visit, Syria said it “condemns [it] in the strongest terms,” calling it “illegal,” and saying it considers the IDF deployment in the south of the country “a serious violation of Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visits IDF troops in southern Syria, accompanied by Defense Minister Israel Katz, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, Shin Bet Director David Zini, and other officials, November 19, 2025. (Omer Meiron/GPO)

The purpose of the visit was to thank IDF troops for deploying to the newly-held zone, the Prime Minister’s Office told The Times of Israel.

“They really appreciated the visit,” said a PMO official. “There are soldiers there on their sixth round. They said they want to continue, and they want to continue getting all the borders safe.”

“At the start of the visit, the prime minister arrived at an IDF post, where he conducted an observation of the sector, and afterward held a security discussion,” Netanyahu’s office said.

Netanyahu “met with active-duty and reserve soldiers, praised their actions during the war and their efforts to maintain security in the area, and answered their questions,” the PMO added.

Netanyahu was joined by Defense Minister Israel Katz, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir and Shin Bet head David Zini.

They were also joined by acting National Security Council chief Gil Reich, Israeli Ambassador to the US Yehiel Leiter, Northern Command head Maj. Gen. Rafi Milo, Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories Maj. Gen. Ghassan Alian and 210th Division Commander Brig. Gen. Yair Peli.

The IDF has been deployed to nine posts inside southern Syria since the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime in December 2024, mostly within a UN-patrolled buffer zone on the border between the countries.

Two posts are on the Syrian side of Mount Hermon.

Troops have been operating in areas up to around 15 kilometers (nine miles) deep into Syria, aiming to capture weapons that Israel says could pose a threat to the country if they fall into the hands of “hostile forces,” including Lebanon’s Hezbollah.

Security agreement with Syria ‘not close yet’

While Damascus and Jerusalem have engaged in US-mediated talks to reach a security agreement for southern Syria and the Israeli border along the Golan Heights, an agreement is not going to be signed in the near future, a senior Israeli official told The Times of Israel on Wednesday.

“We’re not close yet,” the official said. “It’s not in the cards right now.”

A Kan report this week said that Jerusalem is refusing to pull out of its positions in southern Syria in exchange for less than a full peace deal with Damascus, which currently is not under discussion.

Following his landmark visit to the White House on Monday, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa threw cold water on the prospect of his country joining the Abraham Accords, saying that conditions were premature, and that Syria was “not going to enter into a negotiation directly right now.”

He also spoke disparagingly of the ongoing IDF presence in Syrian territory.

“Israel occupied the Golan Heights in order to protect Israel, and now they are imposing conditions in the south of Syria in order to protect the Golan Heights,” Sharaa said last week. “So after a few years, maybe they will occupy the center of Syria in order to protect the south of Syria. They will reach Munich on that pathway.”