Israeli ground troops continue to operate in southwestern Syria, carrying out raids against villages in both the Daraa and Quineitra Governorates. This comes amid ongoing talks between Syria and Israel trying to reduce tensions.
On Sunday, Israeli troops in armored vehicles raided the village of Saida, forcing their way into civilian homes to carry out searches, and unusually enough, trying to force villagers to answer surveys before ultimately withdrawing.
Israeli troops raiding villages, rummaging around for a while, and then leaving is roughly the new normal in this area, with troops not trying to maintain a permanent presence within towns, rather building their outposts in nearby areas and then showing up when they want something.
The bases aren’t necessarily in the safest places, with one Israeli reservist soldier, described by Israeli media as both a tank officer and rabbi, being seriously wounded in an explosion near their outpost at Tel Kwdana. An IDF probe suggested this was likely him stumbling upon an old, unexploded land mine in the area, which is along the frontier between Syria and the occupied Golan Heights.
The operations continued into Tuesday, with Israeli troops showing up on the outskirts of the Daraa village of Abdin, setting up a military checkpoint for people who try to leave the village. An additional checkpoint was set up in a similar manner near the town of Kouya.
The checkpoints were set up proximal to a water well along the road in the area, and seem to be aimed at controlling access to drinking water from the well. The IDF has not commented on the operation, but locals reported that Israeli drones were also seen in the area.
The talks between Israel and Syria continue, but Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani said efforts at normalization are difficult because of the ongoing invasion and occupation of Syrian territory.
