DAMASCUS

Syria condemned the Israeli bombing of the western Daraa province on Tuesday, demanding an international investigation into Tel Aviv’s violations of its sovereignty and crimes against its citizens.

At least six people were killed and several others injured in an Israeli incursion and shelling in the town of Koya in western Daraa on Tuesday.

In a statement, the Syrian Foreign Ministry denounced “the ongoing Israeli aggression on Syrian territory, which saw a dangerous escalation in Koya town in Daraa.”

This escalation “was the latest in a series of violations that began with Israeli incursions into the Quneitra and Daraa provinces and ongoing assaults on Syrian territory,” the ministry said, calling it “a blatant violation of national sovereignty and international law."

Syria “categorically rejects these crimes” and calls for “an international investigation into the offenses committed against innocents and into Israel’s violations,” the ministry asserted.

The ministry urged Syrians to “hold fast to their land and resist any (Israeli) attempts aimed at displacement or imposing a new reality by force.”

“These attacks will not deter Syrians from defending their rights and territory,” it stressed.

The Israeli army acknowledged the attack in Koya, saying its forces returned fire after identifying gunmen who allegedly opened fire on Israeli forces.

Last week, Israeli warplanes carried out several airstrikes in Daraa, killing at least four people and injuring 19 others, including women and children.

After the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime, Israel expanded its occupation of the Syrian Golan Heights by seizing the demilitarized buffer zone, a move that violated the 1974 Disengagement Agreement with Syria.

Israel also launched hundreds of airstrikes that targeted military sites and assets across Syria, including fighter jets, missile systems, and air defense installations, according to reports.

Assad, Syria’s leader for nearly 25 years, fled to Russia after anti-regime groups took control of Damascus on Dec. 8, ending the Baath Party regime, which had been in power since 1963.

Ahmed al-Sharaa, who led anti-regime forces to oust Assad, was declared president for a transitional period in late January.