Israel Drops Warning Leaflets over Syria’s Quneitra

Israeli soldiers during a military exercise in the occupied Golan Heights on Wednesday. (AFP)
Israeli soldiers during a military exercise in the occupied Golan Heights on Wednesday. (AFP)
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Israel Drops Warning Leaflets over Syria’s Quneitra

Israeli soldiers during a military exercise in the occupied Golan Heights on Wednesday. (AFP)
Israeli soldiers during a military exercise in the occupied Golan Heights on Wednesday. (AFP)

The Israeli army dropped warning leaflets over Syria’s Quneitra region overnight Tuesday, reported Israel’s Kan radio.

The leaflets were dropped in wake of an attack blamed on Israel that night, said Syrian opposition figures on Wednesday.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that fires had broken out in a military position belonging to regime forces and Iranian militias west of the town of Khodr in Quneitra’s northern countryside after being struck by three rockets fired by Israel on Tuesday night.

The leaflets delivered warnings to the Syrian military against cooperating with the Lebanese Hezbollah party, specifically one its senior members, whom it identified as Hajj Jawad Hashem, who is active in Syria and had been named in previous leaflets.

“Carrying out dirty work for Hezbollah has become a priority for the Syrian army,” read the leaflet.

It added: “Hajj Hashem and his men roam positions in southern Syrian, including positions in Qars al-Naql and the 90th Brigade that were targeted the night before yesterday.”

“The members of the Syrian army have been turned into Hezbollah’s dummies without them even realizing it,” it read.

It warned that the members of the Syrian military are being closely watched and that they should be careful of their actions.

“Abetting Hajj Hashem will lead to your destruction,” it warned.

Syrian television on Tuesday reported that Israel had struck the border region of Quneitra near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

Syrian opposition sources said the attack targeted military positions, including one affiliated with Hezbollah. The other belongs to the military’s 90th Brigade.



Grundberg in Yemen to Urge Houthis to Accept Peace, Release Detainees

UN Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg arrives at Sanaa Airport, in Sanaa, Yemen, 06 January 2025. (EPA)
UN Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg arrives at Sanaa Airport, in Sanaa, Yemen, 06 January 2025. (EPA)
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Grundberg in Yemen to Urge Houthis to Accept Peace, Release Detainees

UN Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg arrives at Sanaa Airport, in Sanaa, Yemen, 06 January 2025. (EPA)
UN Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg arrives at Sanaa Airport, in Sanaa, Yemen, 06 January 2025. (EPA)

UN Special Envoy for Yemen for Yemen Hans Grundberg arrived in Houthi-held Sanaa on Monday as part of his efforts to urge the Iran-backed militias to accept peace and release employees from the UN and humanitarian agencies.

Grundberg's “visit is part of the ongoing efforts to de-escalate the current tensions that have engulfed the region and Yemen,” UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric said Monday. “In addition, his efforts will focus on advancing the peace process.”

The Houthis have stepped up their missile attacks against Israel, and have been targeting shipping in the Red Sea corridor for over a year — attacks they say won't stop until there's a ceasefire in Gaza. Israel has repeatedly bombarded Yemen's ports, oil infrastructure and the airport in Sanaa, some 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) away.

“We’ll also be pushing for the release of the arbitrarily detained UN personnel and also from other NGOs and civil society,” the UN spokesman said.

The Houthis claim the detainees, most of them held since June, are part of an “American-Israeli spy network,” an allegation vehemently denied by the UN, NGO organizations, governments and others.

Grundberg arrived in Yemen after holding talks with Omani officials in Muscat. Present at the talks was Houthi spokesman and chief negotiator Mohammed Abdelsalam.

The envoy is hoping to make a breakthrough in the Yemeni crisis after his efforts stalled with the Houthis launching their attacks on Red Sea and Gulf of Aden shipping.

A statement from his office said he is hoping his meetings in Sanaa will lead to the Houthis to take tangible steps to push the peace process forward.

“His visit is part of his ongoing efforts to urge for concrete and essential actions by the Houthis for advancing the peace process. It is also part of his continuing efforts to support the release of the arbitrarily detained UN, NGO, civil society and diplomatic mission personnel,” said the Office of the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Yemen (OSESGY) on the X platform.

He plans to conduct a series of national and regional meetings in the coming days under his mediation efforts.