Bedouin civilians evacuated from Syria's Sweida as US-backed truce holds
Interior ministry forces deployed to the city's outskirts after the ceasefire took effect on Sunday. Interior Minister Anas Khattab said the truce aimed to enable the release of hostages and detainees.
The clashes, which began last week, left hundreds dead and prompted Israeli airstrikes in southern Syria. The violence has presented a major test for interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, deepening fractures in a country already devastated by 14 years of war.
The fighting erupted between Druze groups hostile to the Islamist-led government and Sunni Bedouin tribes. Government troops were sent to intervene but were later accused of abuses against the Druze population.
Sharaa blamed the unrest on 'outlaw groups' and pledged to protect the Druze community, calling them an integral part of the Syrian nation. He promised to hold those responsible for violations to account.
Witnesses told Reuters of killings in the town of Shahba, 15km north of Sweida. Ali al-Huraym, a 56-year-old Bedouin, said six relatives were killed despite Druze elders' assurances of safety. Another displaced man, Salem al-Mahdi, said he saw multiple bodies in one home and reported the use of mortars.
Druze activist Luna Albassit said the situation remained tense despite the halt in clashes. 'People were killed in the streets, in their homes… in the name of the state,' she told Reuters by phone.
Suwayda 24 footage showed body bags lined outside a local hospital. The Syrian Network for Human Rights said at least 558 people were killed in Sweida since July 13, while the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights put the toll at over 1,000.
MASS EVACUATIONS UNDERWAY
On Monday, convoys of ambulances and buses began transporting civilians out of Sweida. Around 300 Bedouins were evacuated, with another 550 expected to leave in the next 24 hours, a Syrian security official told Reuters.
A total of 1,500 Bedouins will be evacuated under the plan, Syrian state media said. The next phase will involve the return of bodies and the release of captured Bedouin fighters.
The United Nations said at least 93,000 people have been displaced by the violence. Humanitarian convoys carrying medical aid were still awaiting entry to Sweida, the UN said, though the Syrian Arab Red Crescent had been granted limited access.
ISRAELI STRIKES, US RESPONSE
Israel launched airstrikes last week, hitting government positions in southern Syria and targeting the defence ministry in Damascus. It said the goal was to protect Druze communities and keep the south demilitarised.
The United States, which has supported Damascus since Sharaa met President Donald Trump in May, said it did not authorise Israel's strikes.
'The Syrian government needs to be held accountable,' US envoy Tom Barrack said during a visit to Beirut. 'They also need to be given the responsibility that they're there to do.'
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