Israeli occupation in southern Syria draws mounting reports of displacement and destruction of homes

Amnesty International documented the demolition of homes, orchards and farmland in Quneitra and called for the events to be investigated as possible war crimes given the absence of active hostilities.

The fall of Bashar al-Assad’s government in 2024 was followed by an incursion of Israeli forces into Syrian territory. As documented by Amnesty International, Israeli troops crossed from the Golan Heights (territory occupied by Israel since 1967) into various localities in the Quneitra governorate, in southern Syria. The operation reached three villages located within the demilitarized zone supervised by the United Nations, where military personnel entered homes and ordered part of the population to leave their homes.

According to the human rights organization’s investigation, over the following six months Israeli forces destroyed or damaged at least 23 civilian structures used as family homes. The survey, based on satellite imagery and testimonies from residents of the area, also recorded destruction of farmland and cultivated areas.

For Amnesty International, these events are part of a broader pattern of destruction of civilian infrastructure in the Middle East. Kristine Beckerle, the organization’s Deputy Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, stated that the investigations show repeated expulsions of families followed by the demolition of their homes. In this regard, she stressed that protecting Israel’s borders cannot be used as an argument to justify the destruction of homes and localities within the territory of another state, since these actions contravene international humanitarian law.

Witness accounts to Amnesty International indicate that there were no active hostilities immediately before, during or after the damage and destruction of civilian buildings in southern Syria. The organization verified these events through videos or images showing bulldozers tearing down houses, or rubble that apparently belonged to houses in the villages.

In addition to gathering testimonies on the ground, Amnesty International reviewed press reports, including information published by Israeli media, official statements by the Israeli authorities and satellite imagery of the affected areas. Based on that material, the organization was able to corroborate the reported demolitions and place them within the period indicated by the residents interviewed.

The investigation also recorded the construction of nine Israeli military installations since December 2024 in the Syrian governorates of Quneitra and Daraa, near the Golan Heights, territory occupied by Israel since 1967 and unilaterally annexed in 1981. According to the report, this expansion consolidated a broader military presence within Syrian territory. Several of the destroyed homes were located near these new bases or in areas where military installations were later built.

The Israeli authorities maintain that their operations in Syria respond to security needs. They have repeatedly argued that they seek to destroy weaponry, neutralize air defense systems and prevent threats from Hezbollah or Iran-linked groups operating in Syrian territory. Along the same lines, in December 2025 the Israeli defense minister stated that the armed forces would remain in the recently occupied areas.

Months later, in April 2026, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asserted that Israel had established a “security separation zone” delimited by what he called a “yellow line.” According to Amnesty International, that area encompasses parts of Syria where the organization documented damage to and destruction of civilian homes, and also includes the occupied Golan Heights and parts of southern Lebanon.

Defending this policy, Netanyahu argued that the zone is intended to prevent attacks against Israel and eliminate immediate threats. As he explained, the Israel Defense Forces remain deployed in the area to ensure security against possible aggression.

In response to these arguments, Amnesty International recalled that Article 53 of the Fourth Geneva Convention prohibits the destruction of property by an occupying power, except where such destruction is rendered absolutely necessary by military operations.

The prohibition is not limited to the total destruction of property; it also covers its partial destruction and confiscation. On this point, Amnesty International explained that the rule of imperative military necessity establishes that any destruction of property must be materially indispensable, that is, that there is no other alternative within the framework of a military operation. It also clarified that military operations comprise activities directly linked to combat, including movements, maneuvers and preparations.

Based on its investigation in Syrian territory, Amnesty International stated that the destruction of and damage to civilian structures in the south of the country took place without any imperative necessity for a military presence arising from military operations. For this reason, the report adds elements supporting the conclusion that the Israeli army carried out actions that violate international humanitarian law and constitute grave breaches of the Fourth Geneva Convention.