Latest news with #kidnappings
Sky News
38 minutes ago
- Politics
- Sky News
At least 30 dead and 100 injured as armed groups clash in Syria, officials say
At least 30 people have been killed in the Syrian city of Sweida in clashes between local military groups and tribes, according to Syria's interior ministry. Officials say initial figures suggest around 100 people have also been injured in the city, where the Druze faith is one of the major religious groups. The interior ministry said its forces will directly intervene to resolve the conflict, which the Reuters news agency said involved fighting between Druze gunmen and Bedouin Sunni tribes. It marks the latest episode of sectarian violence in Syria, where fears among minority groups have increased since Islamist-led rebels toppled President Bashar al Assad in December, installing their own government and security forces. 6:11 The violence reportedly erupted after a wave of kidnappings, including the abduction of a Druze merchant on Friday on the highway linking Damascus to Sweida. Last April, Sunni militia clashed with armed Druze residents of Jaramana, southeast of Damascus, and fighting later spread to another district near the capital. But this is the first time the fighting has been reported inside the city of Sweida itself, the provincial capital of the mostly Druze province. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reports the fighting was centred in the Maqwas neighbourhood east of Sweida and villages on the western and northern outskirts of the city. It adds that Syria's Ministry of Defence has deployed military convoys to the area. Western nations, including the US and UK, have been increasingly moving towards normalising relations with Syria. 0:47 Concerns among minority groups have intensified following the killing of hundreds of Alawites in March, in apparent retaliation for an earlier attack carried out by Assad loyalists. That was the deadliest sectarian flare-up in years in Syria, where a 14-year civil war ended with Assad fleeing to Russia after his government was overthrown by rebel forces. The city of Sweida is in southern Syria, about 24 miles (38km) north of the border with Jordan.
News24
2 days ago
- Politics
- News24
30 killed in Syria, raising fears of country ‘heading toward to a bloodbath'
More than 30 people were killed as sectarian fighting erupted in Sweida, Syria. Sweida is the capital of the majority Druze province. Fears are increasing for minority groups following the ousting of President Bashar al-Assad. More than 30 people were killed and 100 injured in armed clashes in Syria's predominantly Druze city of Sweida, the Syrian interior ministry said early on Monday, in the latest bout of sectarian clashes. The violence erupted after a wave of kidnappings, including the abduction of a Druze merchant on Friday on the highway linking Damascus to Sweida, witnesses said. This is the first time sectarian fighting has erupted inside the city of Sweida itself, the provincial capital of the mostly Druze province. Last April saw clashes between Sunni fighters and armed Druze residents of Jaramana, southeast of Damascus, which later spread to another district near the provincial capital. 'This cycle of violence has exploded in a terrifying way and if it doesn't end we are heading toward to a bloodbath,' said Rayan Marouf, a Druze researcher based in Sweida who runs the Suwayda24 website. The clashes involving Bedouin tribal fighters and Druze militias were centred in Maqwas neighbourhood east of Sweida, which is inhabited by Bedouin tribes, and was encircled by armed Druze groups and later seized. The Syrian ministry of interior said that its forces will begin direct intervention in Sweida to resolve the conflict, calling on local parties in the Druze city to cooperate with the security forces. Armed Bedouin tribesmen also launched attacks on Druze villages on the western and north outskirts of the city, residents said. A medical source told Reuters that at least 15 bodies had been taken to the morgue at Sweida's state hospital. Around 50 people were injured, with some transported to Deraa city for medical care. The violence marked the latest episode of sectarian bloodshed in Syria, where fears among minority groups have surged since Islamist-led rebels toppled President Bashar al-Assad in December, installing their own government and security forces. Those concerns intensified following the killing of hundreds of Alawites in March, in apparent retaliation for an earlier attack carried out by Assad loyalists. It was the deadliest sectarian flare-up in years in Syria, where a 14-year civil war ended last December with Assad fleeing to Russia after his government was overthrown by rebel forces.
LBCI
2 days ago
- LBCI
More than 30 killed in sectarian clashes in Syria's Sweida, interior ministry says
More than 30 people were killed and 100 injured in armed clashes in Syria's predominantly Druze city of Sweida, the Syrian interior ministry said early on Monday, in the latest bout of sectarian clashes. The violence erupted after a wave of kidnappings, including the abduction of a Druze merchant on Friday on the highway linking Damascus to Sweida, witnesses said. This is the first time sectarian fighting has erupted inside the city of Sweida itself, the provincial capital of the mainly Druze province. Last April saw clashes between Sunni fighters and armed Druze residents of Jaramana, southeast of Damascus, which later spread to another district near the provincial capital. "This cycle of violence has exploded in a terrifying way, and if it doesn't end, we are heading toward a bloodbath," said Rayan Marouf, a Druze researcher based in Sweida who runs the Suwayda24 website. The clashes involving Bedouin tribal fighters and Druze militias were centered in the Maqwas neighborhood east of Sweida, which is inhabited by Bedouin tribes, and was encircled by armed Druze groups and later seized. The Syrian Ministry of Interior said that its forces will begin direct intervention in Sweida to resolve the conflict, calling on local parties in the Druze city to cooperate with the security forces. Armed Bedouin tribesmen also launched attacks on Druze villages on the western and north outskirts of the city, residents said. A medical source told Reuters that at least 15 bodies had been taken to the morgue at Sweida's state hospital. Around 50 people were injured, with some transported to Deraa city for medical care.
Reuters
2 days ago
- Politics
- Reuters
More than 30 killed in sectarian clashes in Syria's Sweida, interior ministry says
AMMAN, July 13 (Reuters) - More than 30 people were killed and 100 injured in armed clashes in Syria's predominantly Druze city of Sweida, the Syrian interior ministry said early on Monday, in the latest bout of sectarian clashes. The violence erupted after a wave of kidnappings, including the abduction of a Druze merchant on Friday on the highway linking Damascus to Sweida, witnesses said. This is the first time sectarian fighting has erupted inside the city of Sweida itself, the provincial capital of the mostly Druze province. Last April saw clashes between Sunni fighters and armed Druze residents of Jaramana, southeast of Damascus, which later spread to another district near the provincial capital. "This cycle of violence has exploded in a terrifyng way and if it doesn't end we are heading toward to a bloodbath," said Rayan Marouf, a Druze researcher based in Sweida who runs the Suwayda24 website. The clashes involving Bedouin tribal fighters and Druze militias were centered in Maqwas neighborhood east of Sweida, which is inhabited by Bedouin tribes, and was encircled by armed Druze groups and later seized. The Syrian ministry of interior said that its forces will begin direct intervention in Sweida to resolve the conflict, calling on local parties in the Druze city to cooperate with the security forces. Armed Bedouin tribesmen also launched attacks on Druze villages on the western and north outskirts of the city, residents said. A medical source told Reuters that at least 15 bodies had been taken to the morgue at Sweida's state hospital. Around 50 people were injured, with some transported to Deraa city for medical care. The violence marked the latest episode of sectarian bloodshed in Syria, where fears among minority groups have surged since Islamist-led rebels toppled President Bashar al-Assad in December, installing their own government and security forces. Those concerns intensified following the killing of hundreds of Alawites in March, in apparent retaliation for an earlier attack carried out by Assad loyalists. It was the deadliest sectarian flare-up in years in Syria, where a 14-year civil war ended last December with Assad fleeing to Russia after his government was overthrown by rebel forces.
Associated Press
2 days ago
- Politics
- Associated Press
Clashes between Druze militias and Sunni Bedouin clans in Syria kill more than 30 people
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Clashes between local militias and clans in Syria's Sweida province have killed more than 30 people and injured nearly 100, and government forces were being sent to the area to restore order, authorities said. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported at least 37 people killed, including two children, in the clashes between armed groups from the Druze religious minority and Sunni Bedouin clans around the province. The U.K.-based war monitor reported that military convoys were sent to the area to reinforce security checkpoints. The observatory said the clashes had started after a series of kidnappings between both groups, which began when members of a Bedouin tribe in the area set up a checkpoint where they attacked and robbed a young Druze man. Rami Abdurrahman, who heads the observatory, said the conflict started with the kidnapping and robbery of a Druze vegetable seller, leading to tit-for-tat attacks and kidnappings. Syria's defense and interior ministries were deploying personnel to the area to attempt to restore order. The interior ministry in a statement called the situation a dangerous escalation that 'comes in the absence of the relevant official institutions, which has led to an exacerbation of the state of chaos, the deterioration of the security situation, and the inability of the local community to contain the situation despite repeated calls for calm.' Factions from the Druze minority have been suspicious of the new authorities in Damascus after former President Bashar Assad fell in a lightning rebel offensive led by Sunni Islamist insurgent groups in December. Earlier this year, Druze groups in Sweida clashed with security forces from the new government. The Druze religious sect is a minority group that began as a 10th-century offshoot of Ismailism, a branch of Shiite Islam. In Syria, they largely live in the southern Sweida province and some suburbs of Damascus, mainly in Jaramana and Ashrafiyat Sahnaya to the south. The Druze developed their own militias during the country's nearly 14-year civil war. Since Assad's fall, different Druze factions have been at odds over whether to integrate with the new government and armed forces.
