DAMASCUS, June 12 (Xinhua) -- A Syrian man was shot dead and seven others were arrested during an Israeli military incursion into the town of Beit Jinn in southwestern Damascus early Thursday, according to state media and a war monitor.
Syria's state-run Ikhbariya TV reported that Israeli forces stormed several homes in Beit Jinn during a dawn raid backed by surveillance drones. The fatality occurred when troops opened fire during the operation. The identities of those arrested have not been disclosed.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor, said that the victim and the seven detainees were all civilians. It said Israeli troops, backed by military vehicles and drones, entered Beit Jinn from multiple directions and surrounded targeted areas. Through loudspeakers, Israeli forces called out the names of several wanted individuals before making arrests and leaving with the detainees.
The Israeli military said the individuals detained during the raid were suspected of planning attacks against Israel, and that weapons were discovered in the area. The detainees were taken to Israel for questioning, according to the military.
In a statement, Syria's foreign affairs authorities confirmed that the raid resulted in the death of one civilian and the arrest of several others. It condemned the escalation as a flagrant violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions, particularly the 1974 Disengagement Agreement, which governs the ceasefire line between Syria and Israel.
The operation came just four days after an Israeli drone strike targeted a vehicle near a farm in Beit Jinn, injuring two Syrians and killing a third person whose identity remains unknown. The observatory noted that the drone attack may have been linked to a recent rocket launch from inside Syria toward the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
The spike in ground incursions and airstrikes reflects a broader pattern of Israeli military activity in southern Syria since the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime in December 2024. ■
