The same day al-Assad was ousted, Israel announced that its troops were entering a UN-patrolled buffer zone that has separated Israeli and Syrian forces on the strategic Golan Heights since 1974.

Israel seized much of the Golan Heights from Syria in a war in 1967, later annexing the area in a move largely unrecognized by the international community.

Netanyahu said that Israeli forces will remain in the buffer zone “for an indefinite period to protect our communities and thwart any threat.”