Yasin Gungor
13 October 2026•Update: 13 October 2026
The UN on Monday called on Israel to cease violations of the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement and fully respect Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
“I reiterate the Secretary-General’s call for an end of the violations of the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement and full respect for Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Deputy Special Envoy for Syria Claudio Cordone told the UN Security Council.
Cordone reported that Israeli military operations in southern Syria continue on a daily basis, detailing extensive construction work, checkpoints, searches and detentions alongside the fatal shooting of a civilian near an Israeli military position on Oct. 5. He added that 49 people reportedly remain in Israeli custody while noting a separate incident on Sept. 23 when 14 members of an Israeli occupier group crossed the ceasefire line into Syria before Israeli forces returned them.
Israel has expanded its military footprint since the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime on Dec. 8, 2024, deploying troops into the demilitarized buffer zone in the occupied Golan Heights and surrounding positions under stated security considerations. Damascus has demanded a full withdrawal from occupied areas and reaffirmed its commitment to the 1974 accord.
“Diplomacy is the only way to reach agreement on security arrangements, consistent with international law,” said Cordone.
Addressing broader economic conditions, Cordone said that currency depreciation and rising fuel costs have eroded purchasing power for essential goods, even as sanctions relief and international partnerships, including €620 million ($692 million) in EU support and a $175 million World Bank agricultural initiative, provide preliminary financial stabilization.
He said the UN, in coordination with Damascus, is exploring the possibility of convening an international conference on recovery and reconstruction, “grounded in Syria’s priorities.”
“The task now is to translate these opportunities into sustained support for Syria’s recovery,” he said.
UN Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Mohammed Yahya cautioned that despite more than 3.8 million returning refugees and internally displaced persons, more than 5.5 million Syrians remain displaced, with over 770,000 residing in camps where women and children comprise three-quarters of the population.
“The goal must not be simply to help families return but to concretely help them stay and rebuild their lives,” Yahya said, noting that explosive ordnance caused 2,500 casualties since December 2024 while the 2026 response plan remains only 32% funded.
Highlighting education, civil society leader George Batah told the council from Damascus that 2.7 million children remain out of school and approximately 8,000 facilities are non-functional, arguing that “investment in education is how rebuilding begins.”
Plan International’s Regional Director, Hajir Maalim, warned that with only 16.5% of the sector’s $337 million requirement funded, “an entire generation risks being left behind.”
Speaking at the meeting, the US said it welcomes the “ongoing progress” Syria is making on “political, humanitarian and security priorities.”