Moaz's death sparks nationwide Syrian march as Israeli troops bulldoze Quneitra

Hundreds of people gathered in the city of Daraa on Friday to protest recent Israeli military actions in southern Syria. The rallies followed an incursion earlier this week that killed a man with a disability, a death that has united protesters across the country.

State media reported large crowds in the capital, Damascus, and in Homs, central Syria. Demonstrators denounced Israeli attacks in the southern provinces of Quneitra and Daraa. Protesters in Daraa waved Syrian flags and carried posters reading "We are all Moaz," a slogan honoring the man killed by Israeli fire the previous day.

Taysir al-Hariri, a protester in Daraa, told AFP that the crowds aimed to "send a message to the world" that Syria stands united against Israeli incursions. Outside a United Nations building in Damascus, the family of a Syrian man detained by Israel held children up with posters reading "I want my dad" to call for his release.

Israeli forces advanced into part of Quneitra province on Friday, blocking several roads. Troops bulldozed olive groves, set up checkpoints, and detained residents in the area. This expansion of control follows hundreds of strikes and frequent incursions since Syria's new government took power in December 2024.

The new administration ousted longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad and has faced pressure to manage the southern border. Israel moved troops into the UN-patrolled buffer zone that has separated the two armies on the Golan Heights since 1974. The Israeli military stated it will keep troops in a "security zone" to create a demilitarized area in southern Syria.