Three settlement activists illegally enter Syria overnight, are detained by IDF

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent

Three Israeli settlement activists illegally crossed the border into Syria on Monday overnight before being returned to Israel by the IDF, in the latest in a series of such incidents.

Sponsored P09-II DLP Mini Projector: A Portable Android Entertainment Hub for Israelis AliExpress See the review →

The military said that the trio of civilians came to the Mount Hermon area and crossed the border. IDF troops who were dispatched to the scene located them, returned them to Israeli territory and detained them, the military said, adding that they were handed over to the police for further handling.

The activists, members of a fringe group called the Bashan Pioneers, call for the establishment of settlements in the southern Syria area.

There has been an increase in attempts by the activists to cross the border into Syria in recent months. Several have managed to evade Israeli forces for full days before being apprehended and brought back to Israel.

“The IDF strongly condemns the incident, which constitutes another serious disruption of operational activity and poses a danger to the safety of IDF troops operating in the area,” the military said.

The IDF added that “law enforcement authorities are required to bring those involved to justice and to prevent those individuals from repeatedly engaging in this behavior, which constitutes a criminal offense.”

There have been no charges filed against Bashan Pioneers members, and despite their illegal actions, they have also received support from coalition lawmakers.

The IDF has been deployed to nine posts inside southern Syria since the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime in December 2024, mostly within a UN-patrolled buffer zone on the border between the countries.

Troops have been operating in areas up to around 15 kilometers (some nine miles) deep into Syria, aiming to defend the border and capture weapons that Israel says could pose a threat to the country if they fall into the hands of “hostile forces.”

Syria has called on Israel to withdraw from its territory, and US President Donald Trump has reportedly made the same request.

As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.

This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world. 

If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.

— Gabriella Jacobs, multimedia journalist

We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.

That’s why we started the Times of Israel – to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.

So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.

For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.

Thank you, David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel