DAMASCUS (Dispatches) -- A 
series of explosions rocked a Syrian army site near Aleppo early Monday, injuring at least four people, as Israeli artillery struck southern Syria and protests over fuel prices continued across the country.
The blasts occurred in the Al-Hadabah area near the town of Al-Eis, south of Aleppo, according to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA). The cause remained unknown Monday afternoon. 
Aleppo Governor Azzam al-Gharib urged residents to remain indoors, saying hospitals, ambulances and emergency teams were on full alert. The Aleppo Internal Security Command closed the Damascus-Aleppo highway and roads leading to the site.
Faisal Muhammad Ali, head of civil defense operations in Aleppo, said continuing explosions initially prevented rescue teams from reaching the area before they evacuated four injured people.
Monday’s incident marks the fourth explosion involving military or ammunition facilities in Syria in less than a month. An explosion of unknown origin killed 11 people at a military site in Dayr al-Zawr on Friday. Earlier this month, a blast at a Defense Ministry weapons depot in Idlib killed 14 and injured 11.
The blasts came as Israeli artillery struck areas in the western Dara’a countryside early Monday, targeting the Abidin and Ruqad valleys and the outskirts of the town of Jamla in the Yarmouk Basin, according to SANA. 
No injuries were reported. The shelling followed Israeli artillery fire on Sunday targeting agricultural land near the village of Al-Rafid in Quneitra province.
Israeli military vehicles also conducted incursions into the Damascus countryside Monday morning, with 10 vehicles entering areas south of the capital amid continued artillery bombardment. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has documented 1,068 Israeli incursions into Syrian territory since December 2024.
Syria has repeatedly called for a full Israeli withdrawal from areas occupied after the fall of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, but the regime’s response has been limited to statements and diplomatic appeals.
Protests over fuel price hikes continued in several Syrian cities, including Hasakah, Dayr al-Zawr, Raqqa, Aleppo and Idlib. The government raised fuel prices by up to 40 percent earlier this month, citing the shutdown of the Baniyas refinery for maintenance and disrupted imports.
Demonstrators blocked roads and burned tires, with one man in Idlib pouring gasoline on himself before being stopped by the crowd. A protester addressing de fact president Abu Muhammad al-Jolani said: “Stand with us. Some people live only on sugar and water.”
Roughly 90 percent of Syrians now live below the poverty line, according to UN estimates. The energy ministry said Syria produces about 102,000 barrels of oil per day against domestic needs of 325,000.
Jolani, the former Al-Qaeda and Daesh-linked commander who now leads Syria, departed Damascus Monday for New York to attend the UN General Assembly, where he is expected to raise the issue of Israeli attacks and interventions.
The U.S. lifted remaining restrictions on arms sales and military financing to Syria last week, ahead of Jolani’s visit.