Israeli army forces released a young civilian man they had detained in southern Quneitra countryside (southern Syria), after incursions at dawn today, Tuesday, June 23.

Enab Baladi’s correspondent in Quneitra said the Israeli army released the young civilian man hours after detaining him from the village of Ain Ziwan in the southern countryside, amid an incursion by an Israeli army patrol.

The patrol searched several homes in the village, according to the correspondent.

Two tanks also entered the Tel Abu Qubais area near the village, accompanied by about 30 soldiers, and remained stationed for several hours in agricultural areas.

The Israeli army had announced that it would conduct a military exercise this morning in the Golan Heights, saying the area would witness intensive movements by its forces and vehicles, and that explosions could be heard.

The correspondent said an Israeli army patrol entered on Monday from Jazira Company Base, located in the far south of the governorate, toward the al-Arida area in western Daraa countryside, where it stationed in Abidin and deployed inside the area and among its olive trees.

Quneitra Media Directorate said on Monday that an Israeli army patrol entered west of Asha in southern Quneitra countryside, where it interrogated several shepherds before withdrawing without any detentions recorded in the village.

Gunfire was reported near al-Mantara Dam from the direction of al-Adnaniyah base in central Quneitra countryside, amid continued field monitoring of developments.

In parallel, a young man who works in harvesting was released after Israeli army forces detained him on June 21, southwest of Rafid in southern Quneitra countryside, coinciding with patrols opening fire toward agricultural lands in the area.

The United Nations Disengagement Observer Force, UNDOF, had met residents in Rafid, southern Quneitra countryside, on June 11 to discuss the state of crops and the harvest season near the separation fence with the occupied Golan, amid repeated attacks by Israeli forces against farmers.

Repeated Incursions and Detentions

Israel has entered Syrian territory since the first moments after the fall of the former Syrian regime on December 8, 2024, under the pretext of protecting its national security from those it calls “extremists,” referring to the current Syrian authorities.

These incursions have included ongoing detentions of residents from the southern Syrian governorates bordering Israel, especially Quneitra.

The detentions carried out by Israeli forces in southern Syria are one method of pressure used against residents of the area, alongside other practices that include incursions, searches, checkpoints, land leveling, and home demolitions.

Israeli incursions and search campaigns have become a source of fear for residents, who worry they could lead to the detention of some young men, amounting to enforced disappearance of the detainee, in the absence of any information about the destination to which Israel takes him, and without any chance to contact him.

The number of detainees is estimated at 47 from the governorates of Quneitra, Daraa, and Rural Damascus.

Protest Vigil

Families and relatives of Syrian detainees and abductees held by the Israeli army organized a protest vigil on June 19 in front of the headquarters of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force, UNDOF, in the Naba al-Fawar area of Quneitra countryside.

The vigil was held to demand disclosure of their sons’ fate, work for their release, and shed light on their ongoing suffering.

Participants in the vigil raised banners demanding that the international community and the United Nations assume their responsibilities toward the abductees’ case.

They also called for pressure on Israeli occupation forces to reveal their places of detention, identify their fate, release them, and ensure their return to their families.

Statement to the Government and the United Nations

At the end of the vigil, families handed UNDOF a statement, asking the force to deliver it to the concerned parties at the United Nations.

According to Enab Baladi’s correspondent, the statement emphasized the continued suffering of the families of Syrian detainees, renewing calls for the international community and the United Nations to intervene immediately to reveal their sons’ fate and release them.

It also noted, “the urgent need for serious government action to end this humanitarian issue.”

Families and relatives of detainees in Israeli prisons had previously organized a vigil in front of the main UN headquarters in Damascus to express their rejection of Israeli army practices and the detention of their relatives, demanding that their fate be revealed.

The vigil, held on May 19, included handing the demands to the UN team in Damascus, according to Enab Baladi’s correspondent.