Defense Minister Israel Katz met with Senator Ted Cruz as part of his diplomatic visit to Washington. He said: "I don't trust a leader like al-Julani who relies on jihadist groups that he operates against minorities in Syria - and tomorrow will deploy them against Israeli settlements in the Golan Heights." According to him, "From the moment we understood that the Syrian regime was behind the attacks and complicit in the massacre of Druze - we acted against it with full force." Katz added that "The IDF's presence on the summit of Mount Hermon and in the security zone in Syria is the guarantee of our security."