Israeli military says it arrested Hamas members in Syria

12/6/2025 17:27

Israeli troops entered southwestern Syria in the early hours of Thursday and arrested several people who the Israeli military said were members of Palestinian militant group Hamas but which Syria's interior ministry said were civilians.



The arrests in the town of Beit Jinn, about 50 kilometres (31 miles) southwest of the capital Damascus, are part of a resurgence in Israeli military operations in southern Syria after weeks of relative quiet.



The Israeli military said its nighttime operation in Beit Jinn was "based on intelligence gathered in recent weeks" and led to the arrest of "several Hamas terrorists" planning "multiple terror plots" against Israeli civilians and Israeli troops in Syria.



The military's statement said it had confiscated firearms and ammunition, and transferred the detainees into Israel for further interrogation.



There was no immediate comment from Hamas. A spokesperson for Syria's interior ministry told Reuters seven people were arrested in the Beit Jinn raid but denied they were from Hamas, saying they were civilians from the area. The spokesperson said one person was killed by Israeli fire.