Israeli Forces Raid Villages in Syria’s Daraa and Quneitra, Detain Civilian

Israeli forces carried out raids and searches in Syria’s Daraa and Quneitra, with Shafaq News reporting a raid on the village of Maariya in the Yarmouk Basin area of southwestern Daraa province on Wednesday.

Shafaq News said Damascus Israeli forces detained a Syrian civilian during the raid before releasing him several hours later, and it also reported an Israeli patrol entered the village of Saida al-Golan in neighboring Quneitra province, searched several homes, and later withdrew.

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Shafaq News linked the movements to heightened military alertness and surveillance drone flights over the area, raising tensions among residents in villages near the Alpha Line.

The Syrian state media cited by Shafaq News accused Israel of repeatedly violating the 1974 disengagement agreement through incursions into southern Syria, including raids, arrests, and land-clearing operations.

Shafaq News added that the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights documented 620 Israeli ground incursions between December 2024 and February 2026, with Daraa and Quneitra recording the highest number of operations.

Enab Baladi reported that the Israeli army set up a military checkpoint on the Ofania, Khan Arnabeh road in Quneitra countryside at dawn on Tuesday, May 12.

Enab Baladi said an Israeli army patrol entered from the direction of the village of Ofania and set up a search checkpoint on the main road linking Khan Arnabeh toward the villages of Ofania and Jubata al-Khashab, while Israeli warplanes flew overhead.

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Enab Baladi also said the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported the Israeli patrol consisted of several military vehicles and more than 30 personnel, and it set up a temporary checkpoint between Ofania and Khan Arnabeh and searched passersby before withdrawing from the area.

In a separate report, Saba said Israeli enemy forces carried out an incursion with six military vehicles into Saida al-Golan in the Quneitra countryside and searched a house, with no new arrests reported.

Saba further stated that an Israeli patrol raided a house in the western neighborhood of Maariya village in the Yarmouk Basin area on Tuesday night, arrested a young man before releasing him several hours later.

Elaph reported that, according to Euronews, Israeli forces arrested three Syrian nationals following field incursions into the countrysides of Quneitra and Daraa, including house-to-house raids in the village of Kudna and an operation toward Wadi al-Raqad in the Yarmouk Basin area.

Elaph said these movements came as part of an escalating approach Israel pursued since the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime on December 8, 2024, when Tel Aviv announced the 1974 disengagement agreement had become 'null and void' and began imposing control over the buffer zone.

Elaph added that Damascus accuses the Israeli side of violating international law and of clearing/destruction of Syrian lands, deeming these measures 'invalid and of no legal effect.'

TRT Français reported that, according to the Syrian channel Alikhbariya TV, an Israeli force composed of 30 military vehicles entered the eastern area of Tal al-Ahmar near the village of Aïn Zivan in the southern countryside of Quneitra.

TRT Français said Damascus reaffirmed its commitment to the 1974 disengagement agreement while Tel Aviv announced, unilaterally, the cancellation of this agreement after December 8, 2024, and Syrian authorities said the continuation of operations hinders stabilization efforts and undermines initiatives aimed at attracting investments to revive the economy.