"Martyrdom or Victory": Voices in Syria Against Israel - and the Anger at the "Storm Project"

A report on the rise of hostile discourse toward Israel in local media in southern Syria since the fall of the Assad regime. Local journalists document daily friction with the IDF, including allegations of abductions, expulsion of farmers, and damage caused by the "Storm 53" barrier project. A resident at a funeral is quoted calling for "martyrdom or victory" against "the Jewish hand."

A report on the intensification of hostile discourse toward Israel in local media in southern Syria since the fall of the Assad regime. Local journalists, such as Nour Abu Hassan and Muhammad al-Hamdan, document daily friction with IDF forces, including allegations of abductions of locals into Israeli territory, expulsion of farmers and shepherds from their lands, gunfire at homes, and damage caused by the "Storm 53" barrier project (known in Arab countries as "The Great Storm"). A resident at the funeral of a young man killed in the Quneitra area is quoted calling for "martyrdom (shahada) or victory" against "the Jewish hand." The Syrian Foreign Ministry condemned the continued work on the project, and countries such as Jordan, the UAE, Turkey, Egypt, and Qatar joined the condemnations. The IDF stated that it operates in the security zone in southern Syria to remove threats, subject to international law, and that suspects involved in terrorism are taken for questioning in Israel.