The border barrier between Syria and the Syrian Golan Heights occupied by Israel. (Credit: Menahem Kahana/AFP)
Reported by several local media outlets, the incursion was carried out by activists from a movement called "Pioneers of Bashan." It prompted an intervention by the Israeli army, which said Monday morning that it had "intervened on site to prevent them from crossing the border." "The detained citizens were transferred to the police for questioning," the military added.
The group, which calls for establishing settlements in Syrian territory, had already attempted on several occasions over the past year to infiltrate the part of the Golan occupied by Israel following the fall of Bashar Assad's regime in December 2024, beyond the 1974 demarcation line.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has said the Israeli army would remain in the new "security zones" established in southern Lebanon and Syria, including at the summit of Mount Hermon, "for an indefinite period."
Last week, Israeli soldiers entered the Syrian village of Abdeen in Daraa province, where they faced opposition from residents who tried to block their advance. The occupying forces then fired shells near civilian homes, forcing families to flee to neighboring villages during the night before calm returned the following day.
Israel has intensified its military operations in the Daraa and Quneitra regions in recent weeks. The Syrian Sijil Center, which monitors Israeli activity in Syria, counted nearly 300 operations or violations of Syrian sovereignty in Daraa and Quneitra in June, including 107 incursions and raids.
