An Israeli force made up of three vehicles entered the villages of Maariya and Abidin in the western countryside of Daraa (southern Syria) at dawn on Sunday, September 21, without carrying out arrests.

Enab Baladi’s correspondent in Daraa reported that the force did not raid any homes in the villages it entered, and no detentions occurred. This was the second such incursion in the past two days. The correspondent added that “the force reached the outskirts of the village of Kouya but did not enter, and then withdrew.”

Several residents of Kouya gathered to confront the Israeli troops, though contrary to circulating claims, no shots were exchanged, according to the correspondent.

A resident of Kouya, who withheld his name for security reasons, told Enab Baladi that the Israeli force advanced from Maariya (a village frequently subject to incursions) toward Kouya, firing at stones placed on the dirt road connecting the two villages, fearing they might be booby-trapped. The force later withdrew from Maariya along the road to Abidin.

Kouya lies in the western countryside of Daraa, within the fertile Yarmouk Basin region. It holds strategic importance due to its location at the Syria-Jordan-Israel triangle, about 40 kilometers from the provincial center. The village is around four kilometers from the disengagement line separating Syrian and Israeli-held territories, with Maariya in between, and less than two kilometers from the Yarmouk River, which marks the border between Syria and Jordan.

Israeli threats against Kouya residents

In the immediate aftermath of the Syrian regime’s collapse on December 8, 2024, Israeli forces crossed into Syrian territory, breaching the disengagement line (Bravo) and reaching the outskirts of Kouya within days.

One week after the regime’s fall, the Israeli army demanded that residents hand over their weapons to what it termed “joint operations,” ban military uniforms in the streets, and refrain from sheltering outsiders in their villages. The Israelis also requested lists of local notables and influential figures.

According to one community elder, the negotiations carried a threatening tone, with the Israelis warning they would storm and destroy the village if demands were not met. They tied compliance to sparing the villages from shelling or incursions.

Hani al-Ghazi, one of Kouya’s elders, previously told Enab Baladi that the Israelis warned, “If you do not abide by our conditions, count your houses, we will give you as many tents,” in reference to displacing residents through bombardment.

Repeated incursions

On September 14, Israeli forces entered the western Daraa countryside, conducting searches inside residential neighborhoods.

According to Enab Baladi’s correspondent, the force, comprising 18 military vehicles, raided homes in the village of Sison, searching for weapons without making arrests. Israeli troops set up checkpoints at the village entrances while other vehicles spread around the nearby Jamlah military post, without raiding or searching homes there.

On September 11, an Israeli unit raided the village of Abidin in the Yarmouk Basin, arresting a father and son before releasing them hours later, according to the correspondent.

Earlier, on September 4, more than ten Israeli military vehicles entered Abidin, raiding and searching two houses before withdrawing without making arrests.