Israeli forces raid Quneitra countryside, violating Syria’s sovereignty

ISTANBUL

Israeli forces crossed into Syrian territory on Sunday, setting up a checkpoint and inspecting passing vehicles near the Ain al-Bayda junction in northern Quneitra, in the latest violation of the country’s sovereignty, official media reported.

An Israeli unit advanced into the area and remained deployed at the junction, stopping cars and carrying out searches, the state-run TV channel Al-Ikhbariya said.

The Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) said that a force of three military vehicles pushed deeper into the northern Quneitra countryside and spread between the town of Jubata al-Khashab and the villages of Ofaniya and Ain al-Bayda.

SANA added that another Israeli force staged an incursion near the villages of Umm Batina and al-Ajraf in the central countryside of Quneitra.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli army or the Syrian authorities on the report.

Israeli incursions in Quneitra have recently intensified, with locals complaining of advances into their farmland, as well as the destruction of hundreds of acres of forests, arrests of residents, and the establishment of military checkpoints.

The Israeli army has carried out over 1,000 airstrikes on Syria and more than 400 cross-border raids into the southern provinces since December 2024, according to government data.

After the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime in late 2024, Israel expanded its occupation of the Syrian Golan Heights by seizing the demilitarized buffer zone, a move that violated the 1974 Disengagement Agreement with Syria.