Doha is demanding that Israel “immediately withdraw” from the neutral zone with Syria, Qatar’s prime minister said during a visit to Damascus.

“The occupation of the neutral zone by the Israeli occupation is a reckless act and must be withdrawn immediately,” Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al-Thani said at a press conference with Syria’s new leader Ahmed al-Saraa.

For its part, the Israeli military has argued that its deployment in a neutral zone on the Syrian side of the border and strategic positions across the zone is a defensive and temporary measure amid the volatile situation in Syria since the fall of Bashar al-Assad last month.