Israeli bulldozing destroys olive groves in S. Syria

Israeli forces continued bulldozing agricultural land in Syria's southern province of Quneitra on Sunday, damaging olive groves that local farmers depend on for their livelihoods, reported Xinhua.

Syria's state news agency SANA reported that the operations were part of construction work on what Israel calls the "Sufa 53" line, involving a military road and a network of fortifications and observation positions along areas adjacent to the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

The route runs through or near several areas of Quneitra and lies within territory covered by the 1974 disengagement arrangements, which established a UN-monitored area of separation between Syrian and Israeli forces following the 1973 Arab-Israeli war, according to the SANA report.

SANA had earlier reported that Israeli forces bulldozed around 13 dunams of olive groves near Saida al-Hanout, a village close to the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Residents there have been collecting olives from severed trees piled in their courtyards.

"These olive trees are our livelihood. They support an entire family," Mohammad Ali al-Sawwar, a 60-year-old olive farmer, told Xinhua. "We are not employees who receive salaries every month. We earn our income only once a year."

Al-Sawwar said around 400 olive trees had been damaged or destroyed.

60-year-old farmer Awad al-Sawwar estimated that tanks had bulldozed around 20 dunams of productive olive groves, yet insisted residents would stay.

"We have no intention of leaving it, no matter what happens or how much pressure they put on us," he said.

In Jabata al-Khashab town, Hassan Ahmad, a 50-year-old farmer, said bulldozing operations had destroyed 10 dunams of his olive grove, or more than 400 olive trees, and a livestock shelter, depriving his family of an important source of income during the harvest season.

Ahmad also described continuing insecurity in Quneitra, saying residents still experienced the sounds of shelling, illuminating flares at night, and forest fires.

SANA also reported on Sunday that Israeli military vehicles entered northern Quneitra, setting up a temporary checkpoint and searching passersby before withdrawing.

The bulldozing comes amid continuing Israeli military activity in southern Syria following the collapse of the former Syrian government in December 2024. Syria has repeatedly condemned Israeli incursions on its territory as violations of its sovereignty and the 1974 disengagement agreement.