Syrian Protests: Nationwide Rally Demands Withdrawal After Fatal Strike

Protesters across Syria gathered on Friday to oppose repeated Israeli military operations in the south, following the death of a man with a disability in a strike earlier this week. The rallies marked a coordinated response to the latest escalation in hostilities along the border.

State media reported that crowds assembled in the capital, Damascus, and in Homs, central Syria. Demonstrators specifically denounced attacks and incursions in the southern provinces of Quneitra and Daraa, where Israeli forces have been active.

In Daraa, an AFP correspondent observed hundreds of people at a rally, some waving national flags. Taysir al-Hariri, a protester, told the agency that the group aimed to send a message to the world that Syria stands united against Israeli incursions and anyone tempted to tamper with national security.

Footage from state television showed marchers holding posters with the slogan "We are all Moaz." The phrase refers to the man with special needs who was killed by Israeli fire during a recent incursion in Daraa province. Outside a United Nations building in Damascus, the family of a Syrian man seized by Israel called for his release, with children holding posters that read "I want my dad."

Israeli forces advanced into part of Quneitra province on Friday, blocking several roads. Troops in the area have bulldozed olive groves, established checkpoints, and detained residents. Since the new government took power after the fall of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, the Israeli military has conducted hundreds of strikes and maintained a presence in a UN-patrolled buffer zone near the Golan Heights.

Israel has stated its intention to keep troops in a designated security zone in southern Syria. The country seeks to establish a demilitarized area in the region as part of its security strategy.