Israeli forces raid southern Syria
Shafaq News/ Israeli forces carried out a series of incursions in western Daraa and central Quneitra provinces, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported on Sunday.
According to SOHR, Israeli troops entered the village of Jamleh in Yarmouk Basin area of Daraa’s countryside for the second time in 24 hours, allegedly conducting searches for weapons. Another unit reportedly advanced into the village of Saysoun, targeting a former military post.
Amid excavation work in former military battalion | Israeli forces advance into Daraa and Al-Quneitra countryside#SOHRhttps://t.co/WlKnv5K4CL
— المرصد السوري لحقوق الإنسان (@syriahr) March 9, 2025
Furthermore, local media outlets reported that in Quneitra, Israeli forces entered the village of Rasm Al-Halabi, carrying out excavation work at a former military site before withdrawing.
The latest movements follow an Israeli incursion into Jamleh on Saturday, when troops backed by armored vehicles raided several homes in what was described as an unexpected operation. Meanwhile, local fighters in Tafs City, Daraa’s countryside, mobilized in response to the raids.
Since the fall of President Bashar al-Assad’s regime in December 2024, Israel has intensified its military operations in Syria, launching nearly 500 airstrikes targeting military sites in Damascus, Homs, and Aleppo.
Israeli forces advanced into the UN-patrolled buffer zone in the Golan Heights, citing the need to counter Iranian and Hezbollah presence, and expanded operations into southern Syria’s Sweida, claiming to protect the Druze community.
In northeastern Syria, strikes targeted Iranian-linked facilities near Deir ez-Zor and Hasakah, while sites near Damascus suspected of ties to Syria’s chemical weapons program were also bombed.
Israel says its actions aim to curb Iranian influence and prevent arms transfers to Hezbollah, but the escalation has drawn international criticism.
