Israeli army forces advanced into the western countryside of Daraa in southern Syria on Monday, establishing a military checkpoint that restricted civilian movement in what local media described as the latest violation of Syrian sovereignty.
The Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported that Israeli troops moved into the area between the villages of Maariya and Abdin, where they established a checkpoint at a junction known locally as al-Maqsam.
"The Israeli forces advanced at dawn between the two villages and set up a temporary checkpoint at the al-Maqsam point, leading to a state of concern among residents and restricting movement," SANA quoted Moaffaq Mahmoud, the mayor of Abdin and Maariya, as saying.
The raid follows repeated Israeli ground advances in western Daraa that are often accompanied by the installation of military checkpoints aimed at restricting daily life for residents, according to Syrian officials.
On Dec. 6, Israeli artillery shelled an abandoned military position north of the village of Jamla in the Yarmouk Basin area, without causing casualties.
