'Post' visits Syria in first Israeli media visit since 1974

Hagari: No advance on Damascus, only buffer zone until Syria becomes more stable.

By YONAH JEREMY BOB DECEMBER 11, 2024 17:59

JPost Military Correspondent Yonah Jeremy Bob reports on the ground in Syria following the fall of the Assad regime, December 11, 2024 (YONAH JEREMY BOB)

The Jerusalem Post, on Wednesday, participated in a dramatic visit to Tel Kudne in southern Syria, embedded with the IDF, as part of the first Israeli media visit to that country since the 1973-4 Yom Kippur War and armistice.

An abandoned Syrian military outpost used by the Assad regime, December 11, 2024 (credit: YONAH JEREMY BOB)

At Tel Kudne, IDF Chief Spokesman Daniel Hagari told the Post, “We are here in an abandoned Syrian base in the buffer zone. The only reason we are here is to prevent terror [from] entering into the buffer zone.”

An abandoned Syrian military outpost used by the Assad regime, December 11, 2024 (credit: YONAH JEREMY BOB)

“A couple of days ago, [regarding] one of the UN bases of UNDOF here: we have prevented a terror attack on an UNDOF base,” continued Hagari.

Israeli forces fortifying defenses along the Syrian border, December 11, 2024 (credit: YONAH JEREMY BOB)

IDF not planning to head to Damascus

Further, he told the Post, “There have been rumors yesterday that our tanks are heading to Damascus. This is fake. We are only in the buffer zone, making sure that the Israeli border is safe, and we will keep on doing this [in] this time. This area of Syria is not stable.”

IDF soldiers overlook the Golan Heights, along the border between Israel and Syria, December 11, 2024 (credit: YONAH JEREMY BOB)