Several Syrian Defense Ministry soldiers were killed and others wounded on August 26 in a landmine explosion at a military site in the Damascus countryside, followed by a suspected Israeli drone strike that prevented the evacuation of casualties..

According to Enab Baladi’s correspondent, four soldiers were killed and at least three others wounded when a landmine detonated in the Jabal al-Mani area (south of Damascus), near the town of Deir Ali and the village of Harjallah, citing two military sources stationed at the site.

The correspondent added that drones, suspected to be Israeli, struck the location after the explosion, halting rescue operations and leaving the bodies unrecovered. Four soldiers also remain missing, while drones continue to hover over the area.

The incident occurred during tank training in the military zone, when a vehicle passed through a minefield, one of the sources said.

As of publication, Syrian state outlets had not reported on the explosion or the suspected Israeli strike, nor did Israel claim responsibility. Enab Baladi has sent questions to the Defense Ministry for further details but received no response.

Previous strikes

Jabal al-Mani, which hosts a military site, has been repeatedly targeted by Israeli airstrikes both before and after the fall of the Assad regime.

The mountain once hosted the 76th Air Defense Brigade of the former Syrian Army’s First Division, which used it as a base to shell opposition-held areas in western Damascus countryside.

On February 8, Israel announced it had carried out airstrikes in Syria, targeting a Hamas weapons depot in the Deir Ali area, southern Damascus.

The Israeli army’s Arabic-language spokesperson, Avichay Adraee, said that fighter jets carried out an airstrike on a Hamas weapons depot in the Deir Ali area (southern Syria).

He added on X that the weapons stored inside the depot “were intended for terrorist attacks against IDF forces.”

Local media at the time circulated photos said to show the Israeli bombing of Tel al-Mani in the al-Kiswah area of the Damascus countryside.

On November 24, 2020, Israeli warplanes struck around Jabal al-Mani, causing material damage.

Civilian killed in Quneitra

Israeli forces also killed a civilian at dawn on Monday during a raid on a village in Quneitra province (southern Syria).

The state-run Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) identified the victim as Rami Ahmad Ghanem, killed when Israeli forces shelled a house in a northern Quneitra village.

A local activist, Ahmad Abu al-Zein, told Enab Baladi that Ghanem was a civilian and a war-wounded man who had nearly lost his sight in a previous attack by the former Syrian army.

According to Abu al-Zein, Ghanem had been visiting a friend’s home in the village when he was killed. It remains unclear whether he was deliberately targeted or struck by mistake.

SANA reported that Israeli forces advanced toward the village of Suwaysah in Quneitra countryside with more than 30 military vehicles, firing live rounds and flares, raiding several homes, and briefly detaining a young man before releasing him.

Israeli Army Kills Civilian in Quneitra, Southern Syria