An Israeli military operation in southern SyriaS Beit Jin village has resulted in at least 13 deaths,according too Syrian health officials and state media. The incident, which unfolded overnight and into Friday, involved an incursion to arrest suspected militants linked to a Lebanon-based group allied with Hamas, prompting clashes and subsequent artillery and drone strikes [[1]]. The escalating violence comes amid a complex geopolitical landscape in Syria,where Israel has repeatedly targeted positions it claims threaten its security,especially following recent shifts in power after the ousting of President Bashar al-Assad [[1]].
صدر الصورة، SANA
The death toll from an Israeli strike on the town of Beit Jin in southern Syria has risen to 13, according to Dr. Tawfiq Hasaba, director of rural Damascus health, speaking to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA).
Syrian state television reported an “Israeli aggression” on the village of Beit Jin, located southwest of Damascus on the slopes of Mount Sheikh, resulting in “martyrs, including women and children,” with others still trapped under the rubble.
Abdul Rahman Hamraoui, the village’s mukhtar, told the French News Agency that the Israeli army entered Beit Jin to arrest three young men, leading to clashes with residents who attempted to resist the incursion.
Following the initial confrontation, Hamraoui said, Israeli forces bombarded the village with drones and artillery, causing casualties.
Dr. Tawfiq Ismail Hasaba stated that the injured were transported to Al-Mowasat Hospital and Qatna Hospital in rural Damascus, some in critical condition and requiring surgery. He added that the rural Damascus ambulance service, in cooperation with the Syrian Civil Defense, provided first aid to cases not requiring hospitalization.
Dozens of families have fled Beit Jin to safer areas, according to Syrian television reports.
Earlier Friday morning, the Israeli army announced that its forces had conducted an operation overnight “aimed at arresting suspects belonging to the Islamic Group,” stating they were “active” in Beit Jin and “carrying out terrorist activities against civilians in the State of Israel.”
In a statement, the army said the “operation was completed, all suspects were arrested, and a number of terrorists were eliminated,” adding that six Israeli soldiers were injured, three seriously, during exchanges of fire.
The Islamic Group is an organization active in Lebanon and an ally of Hamas. Israel has previously targeted its leaders during its recent war with Hezbollah.
Israel has launched hundreds of airstrikes on military sites in Syria since the ousting of President Bashar al-Assad by the Tahir al-Sham organization on December 8, 2024, following a 14-year civil war, stating its goal is to prevent the new government of President Ahmed al-Shar’ from acquiring the Syrian army’s arsenal.
It has also repeatedly announced the execution of ground operations and the arrest of individuals suspected of engaging in “terrorist” activities in southern Syria. Simultaneously, its forces have penetrated the separation zone in the Golan Heights, established under the 1974 Disengagement Agreement.
Syria and Israel do not maintain diplomatic relations and remain technically in a state of war despite several meetings brokered by the United States in recent years.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Israeli forces stationed in the buffer zone outside the occupied Golan Heights last week, emphasizing the importance of their presence there, a move Damascus deemed “illegitimate.”
“War Crime”
Image caption, Syriahr
The Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates condemned what it described as the “criminal aggression” carried out by Israeli aircraft targeting the town of Beit Jin in rural Damascus, stating the attack resulted in the deaths and injuries of several civilians and widespread destruction of homes.
The ministry stated that the bombing came “after Israel’s failure to target Beit Jin previously,” noting that the recent attack constituted a “complete war crime” due to the resulting casualties, including women and children, as well as the displacement of numerous families due to ongoing shelling.
Qatar also strongly condemned the incursion by Israeli forces into rural Damascus, considering the “aggression,” as it described it, a “flagrant violation of Syrian sovereignty and international and humanitarian law.”
A statement issued by the Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs stressed that “the continuation of such dangerous Israeli practices exacerbates tension and undermines efforts to establish security and stability in the region.”
The ministry called on the international community to “take immediate action to stop these violations and protect civilians, and to hold those responsible accountable in accordance with international law,” affirming Qatar’s “full solidarity with Syria, government and people, and its support for all efforts aimed at ending the aggressions and ensuring the security and stability of Syria and the unity and integrity of its territory.”
UN Deputy Special Envoy for Syria, Najat Rochdi, also condemned the “Israeli aggression” on the town of Beit Jin in rural Damascus early Friday, affirming it constitutes a “serious and unacceptable” violation of Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, according to a statement from Geneva.
Rochdi said the attack, which resulted in the deaths of 13 civilians, injuries to dozens, and the displacement of families from the town, increases regional instability, reiterating the United Nations’ call to end these attacks and adhere to the 1974 Disengagement Agreement.
Image caption, SANA
Large-scale popular events were launched Friday in various Syrian governorates, reaffirming the country’s unity and the cohesion of its people in defending its sovereignty and stability, while also condemning Israeli attacks on Syrian territory.
Marches were held in Deir ez-Zor, Idlib, Jableh, Tartus, Hama, and the capital, Damascus, with participants raising slogans supporting the Syrian army and affirming that “Syria is for all Syrians.”
