Israel carries out military incursion into Syria’s Quneitra in the Golan

Separately, the ⁠Syrian ⁠government and Druze factions carry out their first ⁠prisoner swap in Suwayda since deadly clashes in July.Published On 26 Feb 2026Dozens of Israeli military vehicles have staged an incursion into Syria’s southwestern Quneitra province in the occupied Golan Heights, local media reported, in yet another breach of the country’s sovereignty.Al-Ikhbariah TV said on Wednesday that a convoy of 30 vehicles entered the eastern Tel al-Ahmar area near the village of Ain Ziwan in Quneitra, where the Israeli army conducted a search operation.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Syria moves out last residents of ISIL-linked desert camplist 2 of 3US begins withdrawing from its largest military base in Syrialist 3 of 3What’s Netanyahu’s planned ‘hexagon’ alliance – and can it work?end of listSeparately on Wednesday, the state-owned Sana news agency reported that Israeli forces reached near Bariqa village, also in Quneitra, and abducted a young Syrian man while he was tending his sheep. In another incident, the report added, three Israeli military vehicles temporarily penetrated the Abu Madharah farm.Syria’s southern regions, including Quneitra, have long witnessed Israeli territorial violations, sowing fear, detaining civilians, erecting checkpoints and gates and destroying farmland.But since the toppling of longtime leader Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, those have become more brazen, violent and frequent. Israel has launched multiple bombing raids on the country and also intervened last summer in an eruption of violence in Syria’s restive Suwayda.According to a tally by the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data (ACLED), Israel launched an average of almost two attacks a day for a total of more than 600 air, drone or artillery attacks across Syria throughout 2025.The ⁠Syrian ⁠government and Druze factions carried out their first ⁠prisoner swap in Suwayda on Thursday since those deadly clashes in July, the government’s media office in the city said.