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Recap for December 15th

  • The Israeli government has approved a plan aimed at doubling the population of its settlements in the occupied Golan Heights that Netanyahu said would strengthen Israel.
  • The interim government in Syria has reopened schools and universities, prompting thousands of students to hold celebrations at universities across the country.
  • Ahmed al-Sharaa (aka al-Julani), the leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the group that led the offensive that toppled Bashar al-Assad and now heads the new Syrian administration, met with UN envoy Geir Pedersen, who is visiting Damascus.
  • In exclusive footage obtained by Al Jazeera, large crowds of former Syrian regime soldiers can be seen gathering outside the Hama Police Headquarters to begin the process of settling their legal and military status.
  • Students return to classrooms in Syria after the country’s new rulers ordered schools to reopen.
  • More than 7,600 Syrian refugees crossed the Turkish border to return home in the five days after the fall of ousted President Bashar al-Assad, Turkiye’s interior minister says.
  • Israel’s air force carries out 61 missile attacks on military sites across Syria while ground troops destroy roads, power lines and water networks in southeastern Quneitra.
  • Syria’s de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa condemns Israel’s land grabs and ongoing attacks, but says the country is too “exhausted” for a new conflict.
  • US Secretary of State Antony Blinken says the Biden administration has “been in contact” with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which is led by al-Sharaa but is designated a “terrorist” organisation by Washington.


Israeli strikes target weapon depots in Tartous: SOHR

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) says Israeli fighter jets have “targeted the missile launchers in the 107th Barracks in Hama area and weapon depots in Tartous countryside” in southern Syria.

In an article posted on its website, the SOHR said that earlier today, an Israeli fighter jet carried out an air strike on radars in Deir Az Zor military airport in eastern Syria.

It added that an “anonymous explosion took place at the only bridge on Euphrates River that connects between the city and Hatla Village, which is one of the seven villages in [US-backed Syrian Defence Forces]-held areas”.


UAE condemns Israeal’s Golan Heights settlement plans

In a statement, the UAE says that Israel’s plans to allocate state money to expand its presence in the occupied Golan Heights “threatens further escalation and tension in the region”.

Israel’s government today announced that it had approved a plan to increase the number of settlers in the illegally occupied Golan Heights days after seizing more Syrian territory following the toppling of Syria’s longtime leader Bashar al-Assad.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the government had “unanimously approved” the “demographic development” of the occupied territory, which would seek to double the Israeli population there.

The UAE, along with its “strong” condemnation, said that it is committed to the “territorial integrity of Syria, noting that the decision to expand settlements in the Golan Heights is a continuation of the occupation and a violation of international laws.



White Helmets pledge to rebuild Syria

After more than a decade of conflict, the United Nations reports that 7.4 million people remain displaced in Syria. About 70 percent of the population requires humanitarian aid and 90 percent lives in extreme poverty. Aleppo, Hama and Homs have faced severe displacement crises.

Farouq Habib, deputy general manager of the Syrian White Helmets, expressed mixed emotions upon returning to Homs after a decade. He emphasised the need for justice and international assistance to rebuild the country and prevent further violence.