Syrian security member killed in Suwayda by 'outlaw groups'

• Israeli forces detain 2 shepherds in southern Quneitra, according to reports

ISTANBUL

A member of Syria’s Interior Ministry was killed in the countryside of Suwayda in southern Syria after a new ceasefire violation by “outlaw groups,” according to reports carried by Alikhbariah TV on Saturday.

An unnamed Interior Ministry security source told the broadcaster that the incident falls within a pattern of repeated breaches carried out by the same groups against the Interior Ministry posts in recent weeks.

On Jan. 17, the same outlet cited an unnamed security source as saying that “rebel groups” linked to Hikmat al-Hijri, a Druze leader, shelled civilian homes in the town of al-Mazraa using mortar rounds and 23-mm anti-aircraft guns in the western Suwayda countryside, breaching the ceasefire in the province.

Suwayda has been under a ceasefire since July, following deadly clashes between Druze factions and Bedouin tribes that left hundreds killed and wounded. The truce has been repeatedly violated by al-Hijri-linked groups, including attacks on military positions, while the government has maintained its commitment to the agreement and facilitated civilian evacuations and the entry of humanitarian aid.

Separately, Alikhbariah reported that Israeli forces detained two young men while they were herding sheep in the village of Saida al-Hanout in the southern countryside of Quneitra.

Israeli forces have been carrying out near-daily incursions into Syrian territory, particularly in the Quneitra countryside, detaining civilians, setting up checkpoints, questioning those passing through, and destroying farmland.

After the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime in late 2024, Israel expanded its occupation of the Syrian Golan Heights by seizing the demilitarized buffer zone, a move that violated the 1974 agreement.