Israeli forces raid southern Syria day after de-escalation meeting

Israeli army forces raided the Daraa countryside in southern Syria on Monday, a day after a meeting between Damascus and Tel Aviv aimed at reducing tensions.

"Israeli occupation forces advanced with several military vehicles into the village of Maariya in the western Daraa countryside," Syrian Alikhbariah TV reported.

On Sunday, Israeli forces raided the town of Al-Rafid in Quneitra province and arrested a shepherd, according to the channel.

Areas in southern Syria have witnessed near-daily Israeli incursions and attacks, particularly in Quneitra and Daraa provinces, including raids, searches, arrests and the establishment of military checkpoints.

On Sunday, a Syrian delegation headed by Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani held a meeting in Jordan with an Israeli delegation under US mediation, Syria's state news agency SANA reported, citing a diplomatic source at the Foreign Ministry.

"The meeting came as part of efforts aimed at reducing escalation following the latest Israeli shelling of Syrian territory and rising tensions in southern Syria," the source said.

On Aug. 18, Israeli aircraft carried out eight airstrikes on the runway of Abu al-Duhur Military Airbase in Idlib province in northwestern Syria, damaging its infrastructure.

On July 26, Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa said his country was working, with the participation of other states, to reach a security agreement with Israel.

Israel has occupied most of the Syrian Golan Heights since 1967. After the fall of Bashar Assad's regime in late 2024, Israel declared the 1974 disengagement agreement collapsed and occupied the Syrian "buffer zone" and other positions, including the Syrian side of Mount Hermon.