A military vehicle stands on the road, as Israeli soldiers gather near the ceasefire line between Syria and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, December 9, 2024.    (Photo by Reuters)

Tel Aviv, December 9 (RHC)-- Israel says it will step up airstrikes on Syrian military installations and stockpiles of advanced weaponry.   Israeli war minister Israel Katz said on Monday the military would “destroy heavy strategic weapons throughout Syria, including surface-to-air missiles, air defense systems, surface-to-surface missiles, cruise missiles, long-range rockets, and coastal missiles.”

A senior Israeli authority and Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said airstrikes would persist in the coming days.  “That’s why we attack strategic weapons systems like, for example, remaining chemical weapons or long-range missiles and rockets in order that they will not fall into the hands of extremists,” Saar told reporters in occupied al-Quds.

The remarks come as Israel launched attacks on the province of Dera’a, targeting military facilities and equipment near the city of Azra.  The attack caused explosions at ammunition depots.  The city of Dera’a was hit as well.

Israeli army soldiers are now heading towards areas in Dara’a, located about 90 kilometers south of the capital Damascus.  Israeli army tanks and armored vehicles earlier also crossed into the so-called buffer zone, separating the occupied Golan Heights from Syria. 

The Israeli forces earlier launched a foray into Syrian soil and entered the southwestern city of Quneitra near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights after militant groups took control of the Arab country. 

The regime’s media also reported the entry of Israeli tanks into Khan Arnabeh, which is to the northeast of Quneitra and five kilometers from the border of occupied Golan.

The occupation forces were reported to be digging a large trench on the Syrian border and have destroyed what they claim are weapons depots.  The Israeli military on Monday published photos of Israeli commandos in the Syrian Mount Hermon area.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he ordered Israeli forces to grab a buffer zone in the Golan Heights established by a 1974 ceasefire agreement with Syria. He said the 1974 disengagement agreement with Syria has collapsed.

Armed groups, led by Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) militants, announced on December 8 that they had fully captured the Syrian capital and confirmed reports of the fall of the Assad government.  Israel had been the principal supporter of terrorist groups that opposed Assad.