Israeli army forces released a young man in the Quneitra countryside (southern Syria) amid continued military incursions in the area on Tuesday morning, October 20.
Enab Baladi’s correspondent in Quneitra reported that Israeli forces released the young man, a resident of Rasem al-Rawadi, who had been detained on Monday while passing through a temporary checkpoint set up by an Israeli army patrol at al-Alam roundabout in the central Quneitra countryside.
The Israeli army also fired illumination flares near the Jubata al-Khashab nature reserve in northern Quneitra countryside on Monday evening, October 19, according to the correspondent.
An Israeli army patrol also entered the village of Taranja in the northern Quneitra countryside and raided a house there.
The official Syrian al-Ikhbariya television channel reported that the Israeli army had released the young man detained on Monday.
The channel also confirmed that Israeli forces had entered Taranja village in the northern Quneitra countryside and raided a house.
Syria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates condemned the escalation of Israeli military incursions into Quneitra governorate and the countryside of Daraa governorate in recent days, coinciding with increased activity by helicopters, reconnaissance aircraft and fighter jets in southern Syrian airspace.
In a statement issued on October 18, the ministry said the incursions constituted a violation of Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. It warned that continued violations undermine prospects for stability and security in the region generally and Syria specifically, while obstructing reconstruction and recovery efforts.
The Israeli army continues to carry out incursions into southern Syria, during which civilians are detained. Some are released after several hours, while others are taken to unknown locations, with no information available about where they are being held or the conditions they face in Israeli prisons.
Previous Incursions and Violations
Daraa and Quneitra governorates witnessed Israeli military incursions on October 15, accompanied by violations against residents.
Enab Baladi’s correspondent in Daraa reported at the time that an Israeli army patrol consisting of approximately 12 vehicles entered the village of Abdeen in the Yarmouk Basin and searched several houses. The incursion followed the burning of a livestock owner’s hay storage facility by Israeli forces in Wadi al-Ruqad.
The incident coincided with attacks on private property in Sida al-Hanout, where solar panels serving several wells and a resident’s water tanker were damaged.
The official Syrian al-Ikhbariya channel reported at the time that approximately ten Israeli military vehicles had entered an area near Abdeen Dam, west of Daraa, while Israeli fighter jets flew over the governorate.
According to al-Ikhbariya, Israeli forces fired indiscriminately toward farmland and searched homes in the eastern neighborhood of Abdeen village during the military incursion.
In Quneitra, Israeli army forces prevented shepherds from grazing their livestock in the Wadi al-Ruqad area. The forces had previously damaged water tankers to prevent grazing activities.
Enab Baladi’s correspondent in Quneitra said that after preventing shepherds from accessing their land, Israeli forces bulldozed and uprooted productive olive trees on the western side of al-Hanout farm in Sida Golan village, southern Quneitra.
Israeli army forces also blew up abandoned military barracks near the village of Baqasim on the slopes of Mount Hermon, in western Damascus countryside.
453 Ground Incursions
The Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) documented at least 453 ground incursions carried out by Israeli forces inside Syrian territory, along with 69 people killed and 162 cases of arbitrary detention, between December 8, 2024, and October 6, 2026.
In a report published on October 8, the network said the incursions were concentrated primarily in Quneitra and Daraa governorates and, to a lesser extent, Damascus countryside. It noted that the figures represent minimum documented totals, based on its database of violations, field monitoring, witness testimonies, and open and official sources.
According to the report, Israeli military operations evolved during the documented period from limited movements near the separation lines into repeated incursions into inhabited villages and towns. These operations were accompanied by killings, injuries, detentions, and house raids, as well as attacks targeting media workers, medical personnel, and humanitarian workers, including Syrian Arab Red Crescent teams.