Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel will not allow Syria’s new army or the insurgent group that led the ouster of former President Bashar Assad to “enter the area south of Damascus” as his government made clear Israeli forces would stay in parts of southern Syria for an indefinite period.

In an address Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Syria’s new rulers should demilitarize the Quneitra, Daraa and Suwayda provinces.

The Lebanese militant group is grappling with a stunning reversal of fortune after its war with Israel and the ouster of its Syrian ally Bashar al-Assad.

Israel is lobbying the United States to keep Syria weak and decentralised, including by letting Russia keep its military bases there to counter Turkey's growing influence in the country, four sources familiar with the efforts said.

Israel launched a series of major airstrikes against Syria after announcing a new policy of “pacifying” the southern portion of the country. In a statement, the Israel Defense Forces said that it had struck several military targets in southern Syria,

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel will not allow Syria’s new army or the insurgent group that led the ouster of former President Bashar Assad to “enter the area south of Damascus”

Assad, Israel launches more attacks, disrupting the national dialogue and asserting control over southern Syria as part of a regional escalation.

The Israeli army said it carried out air strikes targeting military sites containing weapons in southern Syria on Tuesday, just days after

Mr Netanyahu’s comments on Sunday at a military graduation led to fresh anger over Israel’s presence in ... Syrian army to enter the area south of Damascus,” Mr Netanyahu said, referring ...