(JNS) On Thursday, Oct. 22, Muath Salama al-Baeer, a young man with Down syndrome from the village of Jamla in western Daraa, was killed during an Israeli military operation. According to the IDF, soldiers identified a man approaching in a suspicious manner and opened fire after he failed to respond to arrest procedures. The incident is under review.
The following day, hundreds of Syrians took to the streets, from Daraa and Quneitra to Damascus, Homs, Idlib and Hasakah.
I know this region personally. Between 2016 and 2018, when I commanded “Operation Good Neighbor,” wounded Syrians from villages in Daraa and Quneitra were treated in Israeli hospitals, while families across the border received food, medicine and humanitarian supplies. The principle behind the operation was simple: The civilian population of southern Syria was not our enemy, and lasting border security depended partly on our relationship with the people on the other side.
That relationship is now eroding. But beyond the genuine local anger, a more significant political process is unfolding. Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa may be learning that the street can deliver what...
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