On the outskirts of the Druze village of Majdal Shams, high in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, a gate in the fence leads to the supposedly demilitarised buffer zone on the Syrian side. It is known as “the Shouting Hill”, and local Druze villagers have long gathered here to call out messages – sometimes even marriage proposals – to relatives and friends on the other side.
On Wednesday, three days after Israeli troops seized control of the buffer zone as Syrian rebels took over in Damascus, there were no relatives waiting to receive messages. Instead, four-wheel-drive vehicles and tanks continued to pour through the gate, joining the massed ranks of Israeli soldiers operating as far as the eye could see.
