Israel aims to impose a "sterile defence zone" in southern Syria that would be enforced without a permanent troop presence, Defence Minister Israel Katz said on Tuesday, as the military said a wave of air strikes had destroyed the bulk of Syria's strategic weapons stockpiles, Reuters reports.
Over the past 48 hours, following the collapse of the government of President Bashar al-Assad, the military said jets had conducted more than 350 strikes on targets including anti-aircraft batteries, military airfields, weapons production sites, combat aircraft and missiles.
Israeli officials said the strikes across Syria were aimed at destroying strategic weapons and military infrastructure to prevent them being used by rebel groups that drove Assad from power, some of which grew from movements linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State.
"I authorized the air force to bomb strategic military capabilities left by the Syrian army, so that they would not fall into the hands of the jihadists."
Following Assad's flight on Sunday, Israeli troops moved into the demilitarised zone inside Syria created after the 1973 Arab-Israeli war, including the Syrian side of the strategic Mount Hermon that overlooks Damascus, where it took over an abandoned Syrian military post.
