 "10 killed in Israeli operation in southern Syria’s Beit Jin, 6 IDF soldiers injured. Reuters")
An Israeli operation in the village of Beit Jin in the Damascus countryside killed 10 people, including women and children, Syrian state media reported, marking the latest Israeli incursion into southern Syria. The Israeli military said six soldiers were wounded — three of them seriously — after troops came under fire from gunmen during an arrest operation early Friday.
The operation comes amid reports that Israel is preparing for possible attacks from Syria, either by Syrian forces or terror operatives.
According to the Israel Defense Forces, shortly before 3 a.m., soldiers from the 55th Reserve Paratroopers Brigade entered Beit Jinn — around seven kilometres (4.3 miles) east of the Israeli border — to arrest two members of the al-Jama’a al-Islamiyya (Islamic Group) based on recent intelligence suggesting they were planning attacks on Israel.
“The number of martyrs from the Israeli aggression … has risen to 10, including women and children, while others remain trapped under the rubble,” Syrian state TV reported, saying dozens of families fled the village to nearby areas.
The IDF said troops returned fire and received aerial support from helicopters and drones, while fighter jets carried out several pre-planned strikes.
Israel’s military said its forces were targeting suspects from the Lebanese Islamist group Jamaa Islamiya. “The suspects operated in the area of Beit Jin in southern Syria and advanced terror attacks against Israeli civilians,” it said, adding that soldiers “responded with fire toward the terrorists, along with aerial assistance”.
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View AllLocal official Abdul Rahman Al-Hamrawi told AFP that Israeli forces raided the village on the foothills of Mount Hermon, triggering clashes. “The Israeli occupation army raided Beit Jin to arrest three young men from the village, leading to clashes with residents who tried to resist the Israeli incursion,” he said. “Following the clashes, the Israeli occupation forces shelled the area with artillery and drones.”
Since the fall of Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad in December 2024 and the rise of an Islamist leadership in Damascus, Israel has conducted hundreds of strikes in Syria. Israel also deployed troops into the UN-patrolled buffer zone separating Israeli and Syrian forces on the Golan Heights since 1974.