Syrian Unrest: Nationwide rallies follow fatal strike and Quneitra incursion
Demonstrators in Damascus and Homs protested after Israeli forces killed a disabled man in Daraa and bulldozed olive groves in the south.
By Emmanuel Faure ·
Protesters gathered across Syria on Friday to challenge Israeli military operations in the country’s southern provinces. The demonstrations followed a fatal strike earlier in the week that killed a man with a disability, an event that state media identified as the catalyst for the nationwide mobilization.
State television footage showed crowds in the capital, Damascus, and in Homs, located in central Syria. In the city of Daraa, an AFP correspondent observed hundreds of participants, some waving national flags, congregating at a rally. The visual record included marchers carrying posters with the slogan “We are all Moaz,” a direct reference to the man with special needs whom Syrian officials said was killed by Israeli fire during a recent incursion in Daraa province.
Taysir al-Hariri, a protester in Daraa, told the AFP that the crowd aimed to “send a message to the world” regarding Syrian unity. He stated the group stood “against Israeli incursions and against anyone who is tempted to tamper. with national security.” In a separate scene outside a United Nations building in Damascus, the family of a Syrian man detained by Israel held posters reading “I want my dad” to demand his release.
On the ground, Israeli forces advanced into a section of Quneitra province on Friday, blocking multiple roads. The troops bulldozed olive groves, established checkpoints, and detained local residents in the area. This expansion of control marks a physical deepening of the military presence in the region.
The current operations occur against a backdrop of frequent Israeli activity since a new government took power in December 2024 following the ouster of Bashar al-Assad. Israeli military records indicate hundreds of strikes have been conducted within Syrian territory. The country has also maintained a position in a UN-patrolled buffer zone that has separated forces on the Golan Heights since 1974, with officials vowing to keep troops in a designated security zone while seeking a wider demilitarized area.
The convergence of the fatal strike in Daraa and the physical seizure of land in Quneitra has transformed localized grievances into a coordinated national response. The presence of families of detainees alongside the mourning crowds for Moaz indicates a broadening scope of the public’s demands regarding the status of the southern border.
Source: Middle East Eye
