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Al Jazeera
a day ago
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Photos: Syria's Bedouin clans withdraw from Druze city of Suwayda
Published On 21 Jul 2025 21 Jul 2025 Syria's armed Bedouin clans have announced their withdrawal from the Druze-majority city of Suwayda after weeklong clashes and a United States-brokered ceasefire. Fighting between Druze fighters and Sunni Muslim clans killed more than 250 people and threatened to unravel Syria's already fragile post-war transition. Israel also launched dozens of air strikes in the southern province of Suwayda, targeting government forces, who had in effect sided with the Bedouins. The fighting also led to a series of sectarian attacks against the Druze community, followed by revenge attacks against the Bedouins. Interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, who has been perceived as more sympathetic to the Bedouins, tried to appeal to the Druze community while remaining critical of its fighters. He later urged the Bedouins to leave the city, saying they 'cannot replace the role of the state in handling the country's affairs and restoring security'. Dozens of armed Bedouins alongside other clans from around the country who came to support them remained on the outskirts of Suwayda as government security forces and military police were deployed on Sunday to oversee their exit from the entire province. The Bedouin fighters blamed the clashes on Druze factions loyal to spiritual leader Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri and accused them of harming Bedouin families. The Syrian government on Monday began evacuating Bedouin families trapped inside Suwayda. Syrian state media said on Sunday that the government had coordinated with some officials in Suwayda to bring in coaches to evacuate about 1,500 Bedouins from the city. Interior Minister Ahmad al-Dalati told the SANA news agency that the initiative would also allow displaced civilians from Suwayda to return because the fighting has largely stopped and efforts for a complete ceasefire are ongoing. Syrian authorities did not give further details about the evacuation or how it ties into the broader agreement after failed talks for a captive exchange deal.
France 24
5 days ago
- Politics
- France 24
‘We are keen on accountability': Syria's al-Sharaa vows justice after deadly Druze clashes
Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa vowed Thursday that those behind violence against the Druze minority would be held accountable after deadly clashes in their southern heartland, saying security responsibility would be returned to local authorities. "We are keen on holding accountable those who transgressed and abused our Druze people, as they are under the protection and responsibility of the state," Sharaa said in a televised address. The Syrian government announced on Wednesday a new ceasefire in Sweida and a halt to military operations there after days of violence that killed more than 350 people, according to a war monitor. It also said the army had begun withdrawing from the Druze-majority city. Security forces had been deployed there a day earlier with the stated aim of overseeing a previous truce, following days of deadly clashes between Druze fighters and local Bedouin tribes. But witnesses said the government forces had joined the Bedouin in attacking Druze fighters and civilians. Sharaa said that "responsibility" for security in Sweida would be handed to religious elders and some local factions "based on the supreme national interest". Before the government intervention, Druze areas were mainly controlled by fighters from the minority. Addressing the Druze, Sharaa said the community was "a fundamental part of the fabric of this nation... protecting your rights and freedom is one of our priorities". Syria's Islamist authorities, who toppled longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December, have had strained relations with Syria's religious and ethnic minorities, and have been accused of not doing enough to protect them. 'Mediation' March saw massacres of more than 1,700 mostly Alawite civilians in their coastal heartland, with government affiliated groups blamed for most of the killings. Government forces also battled Druze fighters in Sweida province and near Damascus in April and May, leaving more than 100 people dead. Sharaa said "outlaw groups", whose leaders "rejected dialogue for many months" had committed "crimes against civilians" in recent days. He said the deployment of defence and interior ministry forces had "succeeded in returning stability" despite the intervention of Israel, which has bombed the country's south and the capital Damascus. Israel, which has its own Druze community, has presented itself as a defender of the Syrian minority, although some analysts say that is a pretext for pursuing its own military goal of keeping Syrian government forces as far from their shared frontier as possible. 13:57 "The Israeli entity resorted to a wide-scale targeting of civilian and government facilities," that would have pushed "matters to a large-scale escalation, except for the effective intervention of American, Arab, and Turkish mediation, which saved the region from an unknown fate", Sharaa said. He did not specify which Arab countries had mediated. Turkey is a key backer of Syria's new authorities, while Arab states including Qatar and Saudi Arabia have also shown key support for the new government.
The Guardian
5 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Syrian president condemns Israel's attacks on Damascus and vows to protect Druze community
Syria's interim president has condemned Israel for 'wide-scale targeting of civilian and government facilities' after the Israeli military struck Damascus on Wednesday as it sought to intervene in clashes between the Syrian army and Druze fighters. Israel's strikes would have pushed 'matters to a large-scale escalation, except for the effective intervention of American, Arab, and Turkish mediation, which saved the region from an unknown fate', Ahmed al-Sharaa said in his first televised statement since the attacks. Sharaa went on to say protecting Druze citizens and their rights is 'our priority' after clashes in the southern city of Sweida left more than 350 people dead according to a war monitor. Israel's airstrikes on Wednesday blew up part of Syria's defence ministry and hit near the presidential palace. A spokesperson for the Israeli military said the strike on the defence ministry had been a message to the Syrian president 'regarding the events in Sweida'. The Israeli military struck Syrian tanks on Monday and has continued to conduct dozens of drone strikes on troops, killing some soldiers. The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, said on X that an agreement had been reached to restore calm in the area and urged 'all parties to deliver on the commitments they have made', without elaborating on the nature of the agreement. Rubio blamed 'historic longtime rivalries' for the clashes in Sweida. 'It led to an unfortunate situation and a misunderstanding, it looks like, between the Israeli side and the Syrian side,' Rubio told reporters in the White House. On Wednesday, the Syrian government and one of the three spiritual leaders of the Syrian Druze community announced a ceasefire. It was unclear if the truce would hold, however, as another spiritual leader, Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri, vowed to keep fighting, calling the government a collection of 'armed gangs'. Syria said its army had begun to withdraw from Sweida, after the US call for government forces to leave the majority-Druze southern city. The Syrian government statement did not mention any withdrawal of other government security forces, which had deployed to the city on Tuesday with the stated aim of overseeing a previous truce agreed with Druze community leaders after days of deadly fighting with local Bedouin tribes. Sharaa said in his televised address that those responsible for violence against Druze people would be held accountable as the Druze 'are under the protection and responsibility of the state'. He added that 'responsibility' for security in Sweida would be handed over to elders and local factions. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor said the 350 killed in Sweida province violence included government forces, local fighters and 27 Druze civilians killed in 'summary executions'. Diplomats said the UN security council would meet on Thursday to address the Syrian conflict. The clashes this week pitting mostly Sunni government forces against Druze fighters have prompted fears of a wider sectarian conflict. The violence is the most serious challenge to Damascus's rule since the coastal massacres and has threatened to further push away everyday Druze from the state. The Syrian army entered Sweida on Sunday in an attempt to restore calm between Druze fighters and Arab Bedouin tribes. Some Druze militias have vowed to prevent Syrian government forces entering Sweida and have attacked them, leading to escalating clashes. As government forces entered Sweida, accounts of human rights abuses began to emerge. Israel's attacks on Wednesday marked a significant escalation against Sharaa's Islamist-led administration. They came despite his warming ties with the US and his administration's evolving security contacts with Israel. After calls in Israel to help Druze in Syria, scores of Israeli Druze broke through the border fence on Wednesday, linking up with Druze on the Syrian side, a Reuters witness said. The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said the Israeli military was working to help the Druze and urged Israeli Druze citizens not to cross the border. The Israeli military said it was working to safely return civilians who had crossed. With reporting from Reuters and Agence France-Presse
