At the bottom of a gully on the edge of the town of Majdal Shams, at the northern tip of the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, is a spot locals call "the shouting fence".
It is a somewhat outdated name in the age of modern communications, but it is a moniker that tells a painful story of this part of the Middle East.
Israel seized control of much of the Golan Heights, a plateau in southern Syria, in the Six-Day War of 1967.
Six communities in the north of the area remained, and most of those residents were Druze, a unique Arabic-speaking ethno-religious group.
For over 50 years, they have been separated from their relatives living on the other side of the fence that was a de facto border.
People resorted to standing along the fence line and shouting, to share news and keep in contact.
With the advent of apps such as WhatsApp and Zoom, loved ones have other ways to stay in touch.
But for significant moments, divided families still sometimes reunite with barbed wire and a strip of no-man's-land between them.
Out of 12 siblings, Sanyeeh Abu Saleh has one sister on the Syrian side of the border.
"It is hard for us to see her," she said.
"We would love to see peace prevailing among all people.
"Her sons were married, and we could not attend their weddings, so she came to the shouting fence so that we could say hi to them, and congratulate them."
But after the fall of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad on December 8, Israel sent troops into the buffer zone for the first time in half a century.
The Israeli government says troops will remain there until "another arrangement is found that ensures Israel's security", as the country waits to see what's in store for its neighbour following Assad's fall.
Whether Syria's future rulers embrace democracy or not, the Middle East is on the brink of a new era.
Israel's latest moves in the Golan Heights have heightened regional tensions and drawn international criticism, amid fears they create a potential flashpoint with Syria's future leaders.
Israel moves into Syrian territory hours after Assad falls
The fence line between Israel and Syria is now 3.5 metres high, and topped with razor wire.
Electronic monitoring equipment runs the length of the barrier, ensuring no-one can scale it.
But for the first time in a very long time, one of the gates in the fence at the Druze village of Majdal Shams is now open. Not for civilians, however.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) are the only ones passing in and out, after the Netanyahu government deployed troops and tanks over the border deeper inside Syrian territory.
They are now operating in an area that had been observed since 1974 as a buffer zone between Syrian and Israeli forces, and patrolled by UN peacekeepers.
When Israeli forces entered on December 8, they told residents in five villages to stay indoors until further notice.
On December 20, the Israeli military seized two more Syrian villages, and hours later Israeli soldiers shot live bullets and injured a Syrian man who was among a group holding a peaceful protest against the Israeli military presence.
The buffer zone is slightly larger than the Gaza Strip, and Israel has been accused by Arab countries of an opportunistic land grab after the Assad regime was toppled.
Speaking from the summit of Mount Hermon, 10km past the de facto border fence, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israeli forces did not intend to stay in the buffer zone long-term.
But when it comes to Israel's plans for the Golan Heights, speculation is rife, and the predictions diverge wildly depending on who you speak to.
The height advantage of the Golan
Many countries do not recognise the Golan Heights as Israeli territory. Australia, for example, views it as Israeli-controlled and administered.
The International Court of Justice has ruled Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories, and the Golan, are illegal.
But many of the Jewish settlers in the area believe they are not only entitled to the land but that it is necessary to hold on to the Golan Heights to protect the broader state of Israel.
Joe Sofair moved from Australia to the Golan Heights decades ago, living in the community of Mevo Hama along with a handful of other Australians.
He said the area, which is a high plateau overlooking much of northern Israel, had significant strategic importance.
"There's no Galilee without the Golan being in the same country, in Israel's hands," he said.
Mevo Hama clings to the edge of the Golan Heights, with one side of the kibbutz overlooking the Sea of Galilee and providing a vista north to the border with Lebanon, and south into the West Bank.
[MAP]The area's high elevation serves as a crucial vantage point over northern Israel to the west and the Syrian capital of Damascus to the north-east, which aids Israel's ability to monitor its neighbour's movements.
"In the recent Syrian civil war, there were something like 10 different groups [fighting]," Mr Sofair said.
"I [could] imagine them lined up along the cliff edge. I've always seen this as an integral part of Israel, and I couldn't see anyone else ruling it with anyone else in the area being safe."
But in majority Druze communities, some villagers fear how far the IDF will push into the buffer zone.
Syrians in the Golan fear what happens next
Salman Fakhreddin has been agitating against the Israeli occupation of the Golan for decades.
He was born in the Golan when it was Syrian territory, and his activism for his local community has landed him in jail 13 times.
He believes Israel is trying to shape the new Syria by seizing a "new strip" of land early — describing it as a "new occupation".
"They want to ensure for themselves a chair [at] the table for the future of Syria …. which is impossible, nobody can accept that," Mr Fakhreddin said.
"This is typical colonialism, to control others' lands and to keep controlling others' lands. You'll find it in any dictionary of the colonialists."
A few streets away, tradesman Jad Mari can see the border fence from his front door.
He has spent almost his entire life in Majdal Shams, and has watched on as IDF traffic increased in his home village.
Earthmoving and construction equipment have been moving in, building new roads and other infrastructure for the Israelis inside the Syrian buffer zone.
"We see a lot of movement — it looks like a war zone with no war, and heavy equipment and stuff, and it's noisy," Mr Mari said.
"People are kind of edgy just to know what's going to happen next.
"I mean, you hear a lot of talk about if Israel takes over … so it's unknown for this point.
"I'm not only worried what Israel does — it's what any foreign government does, it's never good."
Netanyahu believes bolstering the Golan population is the answer
Days after the Assad regime was toppled in Syria, Mr Netanyahu reaffirmed plans to double the population of Israeli settlers in the Golan Heights.
"We will continue to hold onto it, cause it to blossom, and settle in it," he said in a statement.
About $17.4 million was committed to the cause — although some of that money was reallocated from previous plans for the area.
One of the 33 settlements in the Golan, currently undergoing a construction boom, is Kidmat Tsvi — currently home to about 220 people, with a goal to build to 400.
"We don't have enough land to give all the residents who want to come here," Yaakov Selevan, deputy governor of the Golan Regional Council said.
The father of four said there were a range of reasons why people wanted to move to the area.
"First of all, it's beautiful and you live in nature and you don't have traffic and you have good education, and your kids grow up in a whole different atmosphere than the city," Mr Selevan said.
Mr Selevan says there is also an "ideological" factor in choosing to settle in the Golan Heights, especially after the Hamas-led terrorist attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023.
"The war on October 7 proved to us the necessity of a strong civilian frontier," he said.
"And people understand that living here, bordering with Lebanon and with Syria is also being part of protecting this country.
"We don't feel any war here. But you're also serving a purpose of protecting your country."
Mr Selevan argued the IDF's push into Syrian territory was not about settling on more land.
"We're very happy the Israeli army did this move," he said.
"We understand it's active defence, there's no intent, we don't intend to have more communities enter the side of the border.
"But we do want the army to protect us and make sure that life can continue here."
