Israeli raid on Syria's Abdin sparks protests near UN buffer zone

Abdin,UPDATED: Jun 30, 2026 09:12 IST

Israeli troops and vehicles entered the southern Syrian town of Abdin on Sunday, prompting residents to block roads with rocks while some young men and boys threw stones at the military patrol. The incident came amid rising tensions in an area near a UN-patrolled buffer zone now controlled by Israeli forces, with residents fearing further escalation.

Residents said Israeli troops fired warning shots at walls and between protesters before shelling the village with artillery rounds. No one was hurt, but most residents fled and many were still too afraid to return on Monday, fearing more raids and incursions after the latest clash.

"They come into the village regularly, every few days," resident Mohammad al-Hassan said, standing near a group of children looking at an exploded shell. "They come in armoured 4x4 vehicles, they roam around the village and search some houses, they knock on doors and if people don't answer the door they break it down and enter the houses. Women and children start screaming, it's a terrifying thing, them coming here."

Israel seized control of the UN-patrolled buffer zone in southern Syria in December 2024 after the ouster of former Syrian President Bashar Assad in an insurgent offensive. Israeli officials first described the move as temporary and said it was meant to protect the border from militant groups, but senior officials have since said they plan to hold the area indefinitely. Israel says such buffer zones are needed to prevent future attacks, as part of a broader military strategy adopted after the October 2023 Hamas-led attacks in southern Israel.

There have been no cross-border attacks from Syria into Israel since Assad's ouster, apart from two rockets fired by a little-known militant group. Still, Israeli military incursions into towns in southwestern Syria have at times led to resistance from residents and turned into deadly clashes. Syria's interim president Ahmad al-Sharaa has called on Israel to withdraw from the area, which the UN says covers 235 square kilometres, and the Syrian government also condemned the incursion and shelling in Abdin.

The violence in Abdin was the second such incident in less than 24 hours. Earlier on Sunday, the Israeli military said it had killed armed men in southern Syria without giving details. An Israeli military official said on Monday that soldiers had killed two militants who were planning to attack Israeli troops, but did not say where the incident happened. The mayor of the Syrian village of Hadar, Imad Hassoun, said two unidentified people in a pickup truck south of the village were killed in an attack and their bodies were taken by the Israeli military. "There was the sound of an explosion when it happened," Hassoun told The Associated Press. "They weren't from Hadar. If they were, we would immediately know." On Abdin, the Israeli official said armed militants opened fire at one of the Israeli military's strongholds, but nobody was harmed.

Residents of Abdin had initially hoped that US-mediated talks between Israel and Syria in France on a possible security agreement would ease tensions, but the talks appear to have stalled. With the security situation unstable and jobs and services in short supply, many people are leaving. The nearest government security checkpoint is about 10 kilometres away, while those who remain are facing shortages of water and electricity. Sobhi al-Tawlbi, 66, said farmers were struggling to access their produce and water sources. "We need the government to support us a little so we can remain steadfast in our villages," he said, while also calling for international pressure on Israel to stop its military incursions.

Residents say they only want stability after more than 13 years of civil war in Syria, but the latest violence has deepened fears of further instability in the border area. "Why are they bothering us? We are living here peacefully in this border area," al-Hassan said.

With PTI Inputs

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