Israeli forces entered the Syrian village of Jabata al-Khashab in the northern part of Quneitra province at dawn on Wednesday and detained two young men. After searching the area, they withdrew toward the border zone. At the same time, new incursions and artillery shelling were reported in Daraa province and west of Damascus, prompting Syrian authorities to warn of the consequences of further escalation.
The raid followed an overnight Israeli shelling of the Wadi Abidin area in the Yarmouk River basin in western Daraa. Israeli bulldozers also carried out clearing work in the Ash-Shahar forest near Jabata al-Khashab, while other units advanced toward Batt al-Warda hill near Beit Jinn in the western part of Damascus province. These actions formed part of an ongoing buildup of Israel’s military presence in southern Syria.
Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir visited units operating in Syrian territory and discussed an assessment of the situation with military personnel. He said Syria was one of the areas where the challenges were changing, and stressed Israel’s readiness to use force to prevent hostile forces from being deployed near its borders. The previous day, Israeli aircraft carried out eight strikes on the runway of the abandoned Abu al-Duhur military airfield in Idlib province, damaging the infrastructure.
The Syrian Foreign Ministry sent two identical notes to the United Nations condemning the attack on the airport and demanding an immediate end to the violations, full compliance with the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement, and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from territories occupied after December 8, 2024, as well as from the entire occupied Golan Heights. Israel says its operations are aimed at preventing hostile forces from being deployed near the border. After the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s government in December 2024, Israel expanded its strikes: they had previously focused mainly on facilities belonging to pro-Iranian groups, but later came to include weapons and missile depots, as well as strategic military positions across Syria.
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How does the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement regulate the military presence of Syria and Israel in the Golan Heights area, and what role does the UN play in ensuring compliance? — The 1974 agreement created a buffer zone between Israeli and Syrian forces in the Golan Heights and established limited-force zones on either side, where troop numbers, weapons, and military infrastructure are regulated. Compliance is monitored by the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF), which patrols the buffer zone, verifies adherence to the terms, and reports to the UN Security Council. However, the peacekeepers are not an independent military force capable of compelling the parties to comply; they depend on the parties’ cooperation and on their UN mandate.
Why are the Yarmouk River basin, Quneitra province, and the Beit Jinn area of particular strategic importance for controlling Syria’s southern border? — These areas form an important belt along Syria’s borders with Israel and Jordan. The Yarmouk basin controls water resources, valleys, and approaches to the three countries; Quneitra directly adjoins the disengagement line in the Golan Heights and serves as a key area for surveillance and military operations; Beit Jinn lies near the approaches to southwestern Damascus and makes it possible to control routes between the capital region, the Golan Heights, and the country’s southern areas. Control of these regions affects border security, the supply of troops, and the ability to deploy armed formations.
Full version: Israeli messages from southern Syria... Zamir on a field tour after shelling and arrests