You are here
Russia offers to keep Iran forces in Syria far from Golan — Israel
By AFP - Jul 24,2018 - Last updated at Jul 24,2018
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM — Russia has offered to keep Iranian forces in Syria away from the border with the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, but Israel wants Tehran to completely withdraw, an Israeli official said on Tuesday.
Moscow made the offer — which would see Iranian forces stay 100 kilometres from Syria’s border with the Golan — during talks on Monday in Jerusalem between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, the official said.
But Israel said the proposal did not go far enough.
“We won’t accept Iranian military entrenchment in Syria, not near the border, not beyond the 100-kilometre stretch, which by the way the Russians talk about and agree to,” the senior official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
“We said there are also long-range weapons beyond that distance, and all the forces must leave Syria,” the official.
The Monday meeting came after Moscow-backed Syrian government forces regained control of most of the two provinces in the country’s south near the Golan Heights, through a combination of deadly bombardment and Russian-brokered surrender deals.
The advance has pushed hundreds of thousands to flee southward, with Israel allowing more than 400 rescue workers and family members to cross through its territory into Jordan on Sunday for resettlement in Western countries.
Iran is Israel’s enemy and Netanyahu has pledged to prevent it from entrenching itself militarily in Syria. A series of air strikes that have killed Iranians in Syria have been attributed to Israel.
Both Tehran and Moscow are backing Syrian President Bashar Assad in the conflict.
Related Articles
MOSCOW — Russia will deploy its military police on the Golan Heights frontier between Syria and Israel, its defence ministry said on Thursda
MOSCOW/OCCUPIED JERUSALEM — Iranian forces have withdrawn their heavy weapons in Syria to a distance of 85km from the Israeli-occupied Golan
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM/MOSCOW — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Russia on Wednesday that Israel would not seek to topple its ally