UN chief says Israeli violations of Syria disengagement agreement ‘must stop’

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Sunday that Israeli violations of the 1974 Disengagement Agreement with Syria are “unacceptable and must stop,” calling for full respect of the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

“Syria’s sovereignty, independence, unity & territorial integrity must be fully respected,” he wrote on US social media platform X.

“Violations by Israel of the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement are unacceptable & must stop,” he added.

The remarks came during Guterres’ visit to Damascus, the first by a UN secretary-general since Ban Ki-moon visited Syria in 2009. The visit comes as the country undergoes a political transition following the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in December 2024.

His itinerary includes a visit to the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF), which has been deployed in the buffer zone in the occupied Golan Heights since the UN Security Council established the mission under Resolution 350 in 1974 to monitor the ceasefire between Syria and Israel.

The visit also comes amid heightened tensions in southern Syria after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared the 1974 disengagement agreement had collapsed following Assad’s fall on Dec. 8, 2024.

Israeli forces subsequently deployed into the buffer zone in Syria, prompting repeated UN calls for Israel to comply with the agreement and respect Syria’s sovereignty.