Israel withdraws reserve brigade from southern Syria ahead of new deployment

The Israeli army said Sunday it has withdrawn a reserve brigade from southern Syria after completing its "mission," with another unit set to deploy to the area in the coming days.

A military statement said troops from the 55th Brigade "have completed over 100 days of operational activity in the area and have successfully concluded their mission" since the start of the war, operating across Gaza, Lebanon and Syria.

The army said the brigade operated under the command of the 210th Division and had been active over the past three months in "defending the Golan Heights" and within what it described as a security zone in southern Syria.

The army said the departing brigade will be replaced by another reserve brigade in the coming days that "will continue operational activity in southern Syria and the Golan Heights."

Despite Syria's government posing no threat to Israel, Israeli forces have repeatedly entered Syrian territory and launched airstrikes, killing civilians and destroying Syrian military sites, vehicles, weapons, and ammunition.

After the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime in late 2024, Israel expanded its occupation of the Syrian Golan Heights by seizing the demilitarized buffer zone, a move that violated a 1974 agreement with Syria.