Quneitra residents report Israeli raids, abductions and land seizures

Overview

Residents of Quneitra province say Israeli forces have stepped up incursions since December 2024, establishing checkpoints, gates, berms and watchtowers and expanding control over territory estimated at about 400 sq km. Locals and rights groups describe frequent stop-and-search operations and what they call unlawful arrests — with as many as 40 people reportedly detained in recent weeks. Al Jazeera spoke with families who say relatives were blindfolded and taken from their homes; one woman, Khadija Arnous, said her husband and brother-in-law were seized in July and that appeals to the Red Cross have yielded no information. Independent verification agency Sanad has confirmed nine new Israeli military camps in Syria since December 2024, while villagers estimate roughly 1,700 acres (688 hectares) of orchards, fields and grazing land have been seized or flattened to expand positions. Medical facilities such as Al Jawlan Hospital have also been struck in recent years, and residents report shootings by snipers and other violent encounters that have left people fearing to tend their land.

Response and impact

Syrian officials and local elders say livelihoods have been devastated and demand the government secure the return of the missing. Interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s family history of displacement is invoked by residents who say diplomatic efforts so far have offered little consolation; People’s Assembly member Jamal Numairi told Al Jazeera the government considers those taken to be kidnapped and will pursue resolutions. Villagers and families continue to press the UN and humanitarian agencies for answers while daily life and farming are increasingly disrupted, they say, as they await the return of detained relatives and relief from the expanding occupation, as reported by Al Jazeera

This story has also been reported by: France 24