While not a direct target of the escalating conflict between Israel, the US, Iran and Hezbollah, southern Syria is feeling its fallout—from drone debris to increased patrols by occupying forces. The post In southern Syria, echoes of the US-Israeli war with Iran hit close to home appeared first on S
While not a direct target of the escalating conflict between Israel, the US, Iran and Hezbollah, southern Syria is feeling its fallout—from drone debris to increased patrols by occupying forces.
19 March 2026
QUNEITRA — Muhammad al-Khubi and his family sat at home in the southern Syrian village of Khan Arnabeh on the evening of March 9, listening. By then, nine days since missiles, drones and interceptors began streaming through the sky above, they were used to the sounds of the latest war.
“When you hear these noises, it’s better to stay inside,” al-Khubi said. So his family did. Through the windows, he watched flashes in the night sky—what he believed to be Iranian missiles, met by Israeli interceptors.
The next morning, al-Khubi heard news of an Iranian drone falling in al-Salam city, around a kilometer from his home. But when he stepped outside, he saw a strange object lying just 10 meters away from the door, in his own garden. He decided not to approach it, as it looked like debris from a drone, and contacted Syrian authorities and the civil defense.
“It was around 70 centimeters long, and seemed to be carrying something electronic, like a camera,” he told Syria Direct a few days later. “It’s good that this object didn’t fall on the house, thank God.”
A brief flurry of activity followed, as local media arrived to film the debris and Syria’s Internal Security Forces removed the wreckage. But before long, the family’s life was back to normal, punctuated by the occasional sounds in the distance of a new war that—for now—remains on the periphery and in the sky above.
On February 28, the United States (US) and Israel launched a surprise air attack on Iran, killing top officials including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and sparking a deepening regional conflict.
Over the weeks since, Syria’s southern Quneitra province—which borders the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights—has grown accustomed to the constant sound of aircraft and explosions. It has also been plagued by falling debris from projectiles and drones fired by Tehran and its ally, the Lebanese militia Hezbollah, which entered the war on March 2.
Last week, the risk of falling debris temporarily closed the school al-Khubi’s young son attends. Syria is not a direct target of the current conflict, but debris from intercepted drones and missiles has fallen across the country, causing material damage and injuries.
Ahmad Muhammad al-Aoud, the head of Quneitra’s civil defense, told Syria Direct via WhatsApp that the province has so far dealt with falling debris from “approximately five drones and a ballistic missile” in the border region.
Roads run along the edge of Mount Hermon, which lies on the Syrian-Lebanese border in Reef Dimashq province, 15/3/2026 (Anagha Subhash Nair/Syria Direct)
For Syria, Hezbollah entering the war by firing rockets into northern Israel from southern Lebanon at the start of March brought the war closer to home. There is deep hostility between Damascus and the Lebanese militia, which, alongside its backer Iran, was a longtime ally of the ousted Assad regime.
Since March 2, Israeli attacks have killed more than 1,000 people in Lebanon. More than one million people—around a sixth of the population—have been displaced, according to the United Nations. As of this week, more than 125,000 people have fled across the border to Syria, the vast majority of whom—119,000—are Syrian citizens.
In early March, Syria deployed thousands of troops to reinforce its border with Lebanon. Syrian military officers told Reuters that the move aimed to prevent “arms and drugs smuggling as well as blocking Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah or other militants from infiltrating Syria.”
On Thursday, the Syrian Ministry of Defense announced its border guards foiled a cross-border weapons smuggling attempt west of Damascus and arrested four individuals, two of whom were Lebanese nationals.
Southwest of Damascus, the border between Syria and Lebanon runs along Mount Hermon, a portion of which was occupied by Israel following the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024. Roads lacing the mountain lead directly into parts of Lebanon like Kafr Shouba, and have long been prime smuggling routes for various groups.
The Reef Dimashq village of Arneh, roughly five kilometers inside the border, sits nestled at the base of the mountain. These roads were clearly visible through a layer of fog this past Saturday, though vehicle movement appeared sparse.
“Israel has cut off [these roads] to civilians,” said Ali Hamdan (a pseudonym), an Arneh resident and member of an unofficial spiritual council for Syria’s Druze minority, who asked to remain anonymous for safety reasons.
Arneh has largely escaped the brunt of Israel’s occupation of southern Syria, which began when the Assad regime fell. Patrols have entered the village in the past but do not interfere with “internal matters,” Hamdan said. “They sometimes put up medical points—we have a medical center in the village staffed by locals, but Israel did bring some of the equipment,” he said.
An Israeli base in Jubata al-Khashab, Quneitra province, established after the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024, 15/3/2026 (Anagha Subhash Nair/Syria Direct)
In much of southern Syria, however, Israel’s presence has manifested as a source of constant worry for residents, with raids, home demolitions, detentions and shootings both within the once-demilitarized buffer zone it invaded and occupied at the end of 2024 and in neighboring communities.
Jubata al-Khashab, a Quneitra village that lies within the buffer zone, has seen regular patrols, home incursions and arrests. Muhammad Mazen Mreiwad, the mukhtar of the village, says Israeli patrols have grown more frequent since the Iran war began.
“For the past four days, there have been daily patrols inside the village. Before, it was mostly that [the Israeli army] would set up checkpoints on the edges of the village two or three days of the week,” he told Syria Direct on Saturday. He does not know why their activity has changed.
“They never explain these things to people anyway. We asked UNDOF [the UN Disengagement Observer Force based in the buffer zone] and they said it was ‘security procedures’ for Israel,” Mreiwad added.
Muhammad Mazen Mreiwad, mukhtar of Jubata al-Khashab, sits in his home in southern Syria’s Quneitra province, 15/3/2026 (Anagha Subhash Nair/Syria Direct)
Near the entrance to Jubata al-Khashab, locals told Syria Direct on Saturday there had been a flying Israeli checkpoint about 200 meters away an hour earlier. Certain roads in the village have also been blocked by the Israeli army.
Caroline Rose, Director of the Crime-Conflict Nexus and Military Withdrawals portfolios at the US-based New Lines Institute, believes that Israel’s operations in southern Syria are a “way of diversifying [their] footprint in the Levant.”
“This is likely why they have increased patrols, to create the impression that they are deepening their presence there,” she told Syria Direct.
According to Israel’s Alma research center, Syrian army elements have deployed to the country’s border with Israel. Mreiwad, however, denies the presence of any Syrian security forces in Jubata al-Khashab, emphasizing that local police maintain internal security of the village.
A yellow gate installed by the Israeli army blocks a road in Jubata al-Khashab, 15/3/2026 (Anagha Subhash Nair/Syria Direct)
Located so close to the border, those in the village can often hear Israel’s bombing of Lebanon’s south, as well as the sound of interceptions. Locals feel the war they hear could reach them at any time, Mreiwad said.
Rose, however, noted that although there is a likelihood of Israel pushing into neighboring Syria if “they end up occupying large swaths of Lebanon,” it does not pose an “imminent threat.”
“Israel’s presence in occupied areas in Syria, post-Assad regime, are largely there to deter Iran-backed groups operating in Lebanon,” she added. “With an enlarged presence in Lebanon, Israel would need to rely less on its posture in Syria, given its expanded strategic depth in Lebanon against Hezbollah.”
Still, the unpredictability of Israel’s movement and lack of clarity about their intentions is “scary” for residents, Mreiwad said.
“This war is between Israel and Iran, or Israel and Lebanon, but it affects us too, whether mentally or economically,” he added. He hopes for a return to the 1974 agreement with Israel. “This area was originally a demilitarized zone—we just want stability.”
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