Several Israelis crossed the border fence into Syria on Thursday with the aim of settling in the Bashan region.
IDF forces launched a manhunt for them; five have been returned so far and eight were apprehended in the area.
A security official reported that the breach at the border was carried out using a circular saw, while they confronted the forces guarding the area. The youths crossed while documenting themselves live, driving in the Golan and searching for a place to spend the night.
The unusual incident is taking place simultaneously with a settlement conference in the Bashan region being held the same day in Jerusalem.Â
Russia, Turkey, delegation tour southern Syria near Israel border
The trespassers are part of the organization, and this is not the first time this has happened.
In October, the IDF thwarted another attempt to settle in the Syrian Golan Heights.Â
Three families tried to cross the border under the cover of a march with hundreds of participants near the fence and were stopped. According to one of the families, the attempt was prompted by the agreement at the time with Hamas.Â
A similar attempt was foiled last August, after a group of families from Samaria crossed the fence to establish a new settlement called “Neve HaBashan.”