Israeli forces intrude into Syria as rights groups accuse Tel Aviv of war crimes
Rights groups have accused Israeli forces of forcibly displacing residents in southern Syria.
Israeli army vehicles carrying troops intruded into Jubata al Khashab and Ufania, towns of the Quneitra countryside, an area located within the disengagement zone in the occupied Golan Heights, according to official Syrian media.
Israeli forces intruded into two southern Syrian towns and began a house-to-house search, with some troops standing on rooftops, causing panic among locals, according to local media.
"Israeli forces occupying parts of southern Syria since December 2024 have carried out a range of abuses against residents, including forced displacement, which is a war crime," Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a statement.
HRW said that "Israeli forces have seized and demolished homes, blocked residents from their property and livelihoods, and arbitrarily detained residents and transferred them to Israel.”
Early Wednesday, Syrian state television said Israeli forces kidnapped four men from villages in and near the buffer zone in the southern province of Quneitra during a raid and search operation that targeted several homes.
Earlier this month, state media said Israeli forces kidnapped seven people in the same area, with the Israeli army saying it apprehended individuals and took them to Israel for further questioning.
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli army regarding the media reports.
After the fall of the Bashar al Assad regime in late 2024, Israel expanded its occupation of the Syrian Golan Heights by seizing the demilitarised buffer zone, a move that violated the 1974 Disengagement Agreement with Syria.