Israeli troops continued their regular raids into southwestern Syria today, sending troops near two different villages in the Quneitra Governorate for reasons unknown. The troops are on the outskirts of Saida al-Hanout and on a hilltop overlooking Ein Zivan.
Such Israeli operations are increasingly common, particularly in Quneitra, where troops often set up checkpoints along key roads, harass locals for a few hours, and then withdraw. Intermittently they detain young men from the area as “suspects,” but often they end up released shortly later.
Concerns are mounting about the direction Israel’s operations are going in Syria, following a Friday incident in which the IDF faced resistance and ended up bombing a town further north, killing at least 15 people.
President Trump and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa
After that incident, it was reported the Israeli military was considering conducting less on-the-ground operations and a more Lebanon-style strategy of just assassinating suspects with drones. Today’s ground operations may suggest that has not yet happened.
President Trump issued a statement on Truth Social in which he warned Israel against interfering in Syria’s “evolution into a prosperous State.” Trump has repeatedly praised Syria’s current leader, former al-Qaeda figure Ahmed al-Sharaa, saying he is “working diligently to make sure good things happen.”
Israel was less than enamored with Sharaa, invading Syria more or less immediately after he took power last December. The IDF continues to operate within Syria, and the Israeli Defense Ministry has ruled out peace with them, despite ongoing direct negotiations.
Trump said he believes Israel must maintain a “strong and true dialogue” with Syria, though the most recent indications were that the talks had more or less stalled, with Israel refusing to consider a deal to withdraw from the occupied demilitarized zone.
Trump’s support for Sharaa complicates Israeli policy, though so far it has not actually stopped Israeli attacks on Syrian territory. Whether there will be any consequences to US-Israel relations outside of Truth Social, however, remains to be seen.
