Damascus, June 30 (dpa/GNA) – The Israeli military has attacked targets in the southern Syrian province of Daraa, the SANA state news agency reported on Monday.
The Israeli army had entered the town of Abdin with several military vehicles late on Sunday, Sana wrote, adding that residents blocked roads and threw stones. Activists from the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that after the confrontation, Israel shelled the area with artillery and machine guns, prompting several families to flee.
The Israeli military announced on Sunday that it had killed “several armed terrorists” in southern Syria on Saturday. It said the army would remain deployed there to eliminate any threat to Israeli civilians and soldiers. The military did not initially comment on the incidents in Abdin on Sunday evening.
A resident told dpa on Monday that Israeli soldiers had set up a checkpoint at the entrance to the town and searched some residents. He confirmed that the residents then blocked the road and threw stones.
The troops withdrew late in the evening, he said, and then the town was attacked. Some families had fled in panic. He said the situation had since calmed down.
The area is “constantly targeted by attacks” from Israel, including with artillery, mortars and machine guns, SANA reported. Israeli soldiers were also establishing military checkpoints in Daraa, searching houses and questioning residents.
This was restricting residents in their movement and agricultural activities. Syria’s long-time ruler, Bashar al-Assad was overthrown in late 2024. Since then, the Israeli army has significantly increased its operations in southern Syria.
Israel declared a 1974 de-escalation agreement between the two countries null and void, after Assad’s overthrow and has since bombed hundreds of targets in Syria.
According to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the army’s presence in the region is intended to prevent potential attacks on Israeli territory, and protect the Druze religious minority in Syria, who are considered allies of Israel.
Israel is concerned that groups allied with Iran could gain strength in the strategically important area near the Golan Heights. Syria views the activities as an illegal occupation of its territory under international law.
GNA