A new incursion into Rafid... And an Israeli escalation extends from Quneitra to Daraa

Local sources reported  that on Tuesday morning, May 5, 2026, military vehicles of the Israeli occupation forces infiltrated through the Tal al-Jalaa gate towards the town of Al-Rafid in the southern countryside of Quneitra.

The sources told "Syrian News" that 4 Israeli occupation vehicles violated the ceasefire line and set up a temporary checkpoint in the Rafid area before searching  the residents in the vicinity of the incursion site, noting that the checkpoint is still in place until the time of preparing this article.

In a related context, local residents recorded indiscriminate shooting by the occupation forces in the vicinity of what became known as the "Al-Hamidiyah base", which was established by the Israeli occupation in the context of its continuous violations of Syrian sovereignty, with no reports of casualties.

Previous Israeli Violations

Three vehicles penetrated into Wadi al-Raqqad in the western countryside of Daraa on Monday and set up a  checkpoint on the valley bridge in conjunction with another incursion into the outskirts of the town of Jamla in the Yarmouk basin, which caused panic among the residents who spoke of an intensive deployment of soldiers in the vicinity of agricultural lands.

On Sunday, May 3, 2026, Israeli occupation forces  raided the village of Kodna and the eastern vicinity of Tal al-Ahmar, which are considered one of the most sensitive locations on the military deployment map, due to their direct supervision of the contact lines.

Israeli shelling targets Al-Mantara Dam in Quneitra countryside

On Friday, May 1, 2026, the northern and central countryside of Quneitra witnessed new artillery targets carried out by the Israeli occupation forces from their military positions on the border strip, where the artillery of the Hamidiya base fired 5 mortar shells towards the western outskirts of the Al-Mantara Dam, which led to a state of alert in the area without recording any injuries, and on the same day, two mortar shells landed on the outskirts of the city of Quneitra in the central countryside, and the damage was limited to materials.

This escalation came less than 24 hours after an Israeli incursion into the town of Jamla in the western countryside of Daraa on the evening of Thursday 30 April, in conjunction with an intensive flight of reconnaissance flights over Quneitra and Daraa, as part of combing operations of border sites.

These attacks are part of an ongoing wave of escalation in the region for weeks, amid local fears of the expansion of field operations along the disengagement line.

More than 60 incursions in a month

Human rights centers have documented more than 60 military incursions of the Israeli occupation from the beginning of April until the beginning of May 2026, in an indication of a gradual and deliberate escalation, despite talk of a "communication mechanism" under American supervision aimed at reducing tensions, but the facts on the ground indicate that this mechanism has not translated into any actual commitment on the ground.

In addition, the Syrian local authorities in Quneitra warned against approaching the contact lines or areas where Israeli engineering activity is witnessing, in order to avoid arrest or direct targeting.

Intensive patrols of the ANDUF force

Local sources confirmed to "Syrian News" an increase in the number of United Nations Disengagement Monitoring Forces (UNDOF) near the villages of Saida and Hamidiya, in an attempt to strengthen the international presence and reassure the local population amid an accelerated escalation on the ground.

The sources pointed out that the mission continues field investigations into repeated Israeli violations, especially the targeting of targets by an Israeli tank across the ceasefire line in the countryside of Quneitra, and collected testimonies from residents of towns such as Rafid and Zaarura to document what happened.

In its latest extension resolution until June 2026, the Security Council stressed the need for all parties to abide by the 1974 Convention, and called for the cessation of activities that endanger UNDOF personnel  , stressing that the continuation of Israeli military activity in southern Syria is a violation of conventions and international law.