Israel’s defense ministry says the military has been instructed to prepare to defend a Druze settlement in the suburbs of Damascus in neighboring Syria.

Instruction comes as new Syrian government authorities clash with local Druze gunmen in Jaramana, just outside capital The post Netanyahu and Katz direct IDF to ‘prepare to defend’ Syrian Druze suburb of Damascus appeared first on The Times of Israel.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz instructed the IDF on Saturday evening to prepare to defend a Druze village in Syria which is currently under attack by Syrian forces.

The attack was one of several in just over a week targeting top officials and organizers for the al-Qaeda affiliate in Syria.

The United States military announced on Saturday that it had eliminated a senior military leader of Hurras al-Din, a Syrian branch of Al-Qaeda that declared its dissolution in January, AFP reported.

Finance ministers and central bankers from the G20 top economies gather in South Africa on Wednesday and Thursday, for a meeting marred by the absence or curtailed attendance of key members and disputes over the main issues of climate, debt and inequality.

The source added that such an allegation is a lie made up by Israel "to cover up its plans regarding Syria after the fall of the Assad regime."

Israel is lobbying the US to maintain Syria's weakness and Russian military bases in response to Turkey's growing influence in the region. This move is aimed at preventing a security threat to Israel from Islamist forces backed by Ankara,