Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz made a rare visit to troops in southern Syria on Tuesday, reiterating a pledge to keep forces in the area as long as there were "threats" to his country's security.

Damascus slammed Mr. Katz's "illegal entry" into the country, which came a week after Israel bombed the disused Abu Duhur base in northwestern Syria, claiming it wanted to prevent Turkish troops from deploying to the facility. Ankara has denied any visit to the site.

In southern Syria, Israeli forces have been stationed in a "security zone" since the fall of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December 2024. They occupy what was previously a buffer zone patrolled by the United Nations that had separated Israeli and Syrian forces.