Netanyahu says Israel is closely watching developments in Syria

Israel is closely watching developments in Syria, said the country’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, this Sunday (1st).

“We are constantly observing developments in Syria. We are determined to defend Israel’s vital interests and maintain the gains of the war,” said Netanyahu, while visiting new military recruits at a base in central Israel.

Insurgents invaded the Syrian city of Aleppo, east of Idlib province, on Friday night (29), forcing the Syrian Army to mobilize again in the biggest challenge to President Bashar al-Assad in years.

Understand the conflict in Syria

Syria’s civil war began during the Arab Spring in 2011, when the regime of Bashar al-Assad suppressed a pro-democracy uprising.

The country was plunged into full-scale conflict when a rebel force was formed, known as the Free Syrian Army, to fight government troops.

Furthermore, the Islamic State, a terrorist group, also managed to gain a foothold in the country and came to control 70% of Syrian territory.

Fighting escalated as other regional actors and world powers — from Saudi Arabia, Iran, the United States to Russia — joined in, escalating the country’s war into what some observers described as a “proxy war.”

Russia has allied with Bashar al-Assad’s government to combat the Islamic State and rebels, while the United States has led an international coalition to repel the terrorist group.

After a ceasefire agreement in 2020, the conflict remained largely “dormant”, with minor clashes between the rebels and the Assad regime.

More than 300,000 civilians have been killed in more than a decade of war, according to the UN, and millions of people have been displaced across the region.

This content was originally published in Netanyahu says Israel is closely watching developments in Syria on the CNN Brasil website.

Source: CNN Brasil

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