The military condemned the civilians’ behavior, explaining that such incidents disturb IDF activity in the area.
Three Israeli civilians who crossed into Syria from the Mount Hermon area overnight were returned to Israel by the IDF, the military announced in a Tuesday morning statement.
It noted that upon return, all three were transferred to Israel Police for questioning.
The military condemned the civilians’ behavior, explaining that such incidents not only disturb IDF activity in the area, but are also considered to be criminal offenses.
The incident follows a rising trend of Israeli civilians and activists breaching the Israel-Syria border over the past few weeks.
In late July, the IDF detained two Israelis who had crossed the border, while Syrian media separately reported that troops had arrested a Syrian citizen during an overnight raid in the Quneitra area.
View of the Israeli border area with Syria, as seen from the northern Golan Heights, April 11, 2026. (credit: MICHAEL GILADI/FLASH90)
According to the military, troops dispatched to Mount Hermon located the two, returned them to Israeli territory, and transferred them to police.
IDF detains three settler activists who breached Syrian border
Two days later, theIDF said it had detained three Israeli settler activists from the “HaBashan Pioneers” settler movement after they breached the Syrian border in the Mount Hermon area.
However, an earlier report from Army Radio said the activists were only in Syrian territory for several hours on Wednesday morning before being located by the IDF.
The activists were returned to Israeli territory and handed over to police, the IDF said, noting that the military “strongly condemns” such incidents as they disrupt operations and create a dangerous situation for all involved.
Sarah Ben-Nun and Jerusalem Post Staff contributed to this report.