Turkey on Monday condemned Israeli plans to double the population living in the occupied Golan Heights with the aim of “expanding its borders”.

“This decision is a new step in Israel’s goal of expanding its borders through occupation,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement, warning that the plan would “seriously cloud” efforts to bring back peace. stability in neighboring Syria after the ouster of Bashar al-Assad.

“This step taken by Israel is a source of serious concern, given Israel’s entry into the separation zone in violation of the 1974 disengagement agreement, its advance into adjacent areas and its airstrikes in Syria.”

The ministry urged the international community to take “appropriate measures” to put an end to the “illegal measures of the Netanyahu government.”

The Israeli decision was condemned by several Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Iraq.

The Golan Heights is Syrian territory occupied by Israel since the 1967 Middle East War.

Currently, around 50,000 people live in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights, half of whom are Israeli settlers, while the other half are Druze, Alawites and others, according to Israeli daily Haaretz.

There are 33 Jewish settlements in the occupied Golan, incorporated into what is called the Golan Regional Council.

Bashar al-Assad, who ruled Syria with an iron fist for nearly 25 years, fled to Russia on December 8 after anti-regime groups took control of the capital, Damascus. The takeover came after Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) fighters captured key towns across the country in a rapid offensive that lasted less than two weeks.

Taking advantage of Assad’s fall, Israel has intensified its airstrikes against military sites in Syria, in blatant violation of the country’s sovereignty.

Israel also declared the failure of the 1974 disengagement agreement with Syria and deployed its forces to the demilitarized zone of the Golan Heights, in a move widely condemned by the United Nations and several Arab countries.

Türkiye fiercely criticizes Israel’s year-long war against blockaded Gaza and its deadly push into Lebanon and Syria, accusing the United Nations of failing to sanction Israel in the conflicts and its Western allies of supporting its violent methods.

Israel has continued its devastating offensive on Gaza since the Hamas attack last year, despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire.

Since then, more than 45,000 people have been killed, mostly women and children, and more than 102,000 others have been injured, according to local health authorities.

Israel also faces a genocide case before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) over its deadly war on Gaza.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan called Netanyahu the “butcher of Gaza” and compared him to Nazi Germany’s Adolf Hitler. He also called on the UN to impose an arms embargo on Israel, which he said would be an “effective solution” to end the war in Gaza.

The Turkish government suspended trade relations with Israel last May and asked to join an ICJ genocide case against Tel Aviv.

The Sabah Daily News Bulletin

Keep up to date with what’s happening in Türkiye, its region and the world.

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