Israel's prime minister has proposed construction of a security fence in the Golan Heights to separate territory controlled by Israel from Syria.

Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday at the weekly cabinet meeting the new fence is needed because “the Syrian army has backed off and global jihad operatives have taken its place.”

The prime minister said he is also concerned about Syria's chemical weapons.

It was not immediately clear when the fence along the armistice line in the Golan Heights would be built. Israel captured the Golan from Syria in 1967 and annexed it in 1981, in a move never recognized by the international community.

Israel has a new fortified fence along its border with Egypt that Mr. Netanyahu says has stemmed the flow of African migrants into Israel.