Syrian security forces have arrested 10 former officials linked to the deposed Assad regime in Daraa, Aleppo, and Idlib provinces. The Interior Ministry stated the operations aim to bring individuals accused of crimes and abuses against Syrians to justice, including a former military commander and a prison guard.
Syria's Interior Ministry announced the arrest of Raft Anwar Al-Amoudi in Daraa, accused of involvement in forced disappearances. Meanwhile, Lebanese PM Nawaf Salam urged Hezbollah to support negotiations with Israel for withdrawal from South Lebanon, a move that reportedly angered Tehran.
Israeli tanks and military vehicles infiltrated the old village in the Yarmouk Basin area in western Daraa countryside, under drone cover. Simultaneously, an Israeli force entered southern Quneitra countryside, raiding homes and arresting a young man in Ain Ziwan village.
Israeli military forces conducted operations in Syria's Quneitra and Daraa governorates, including raids, arrests, and reconnaissance. The actions, accompanied by drone surveillance, have raised civilian concerns and are seen as an attempt to establish a field reality in southern Syria.
Syria's first public trial of officials linked to former President Bashar al-Assad opened in Damascus, with Atef Najib, a former brigadier general and cousin of Assad, facing charges related to crimes against the Syrian people. Najib headed the Political Security Branch in Daraa province in 2011 when teenagers were arrested and tortured for anti-government graffiti, an event that catalyzed mass protests and sparked the 14-year civil war ending with Assad's ousting in December 2024.
Syria's Justice Ministry announced the launch of public trials next week for ousted Assad regime officials, beginning with cases from Daraa where protests began in 2011. Trials will include Assad's cousins Atif Najib and Wassim al-Assad, and former military intelligence major Amjad Youssef, accused of killings that sparked the 13-year civil war resulting in over 500,000 deaths.
