DAMASCUS, July 16: Clashes erupted in the southern Syrian city of Sweida on Wednesday after a ceasefire between government forces and Druze armed groups collapsed. Israel threatened to escalate its involvement, saying it is in support of the Druze religious minority. The Israeli army struck near the entrance to the Syrian Ministry of Defence in Damascus and targeted the same site several hours later with a larger strike. Israel has also launched a series of airstrikes on convoys of government forces in southern Syria since the clashes erupted and has beefed up forces on the border.
Syria’s Defence Ministry had earlier blamed militias in the Druze-majority area of Sweida for violating a ceasefire agreement that had been reached Tuesday, causing Syrian army soldiers to return fire. It said they were “adhering to rules of engagement to protect residents, prevent harm, and ensure the safe return of those who left the city back to their homes.” Meanwhile, reports of attacks on civilians continued to surface, and Druze with family members in the conflict zone searched desperately for information about their fate amid communication blackouts.
A rebel offensive led by Islamist insurgent groups ousted Syria’s longtime despotic leader, Bashar Assad, in December, bringing an end to a nearly 14-year civil war. Since then, the country’s new rulers have struggled to consolidate control. The primarily Sunni Muslim leaders have faced suspicion from religious and ethnic minorities, whose fears increased after clashes between government forces and pro-Assad armed groups in March spiralled into sectarian revenge attacks. Hundreds of civilians from the Alawite religious minority, to which Assad belongs, were killed.
Druze fear for the lives of their relatives in Sweida. Evelyn Azzam, 20, said she fears that her husband, Robert Kiwan, 23, is dead. The newlyweds live in the Damascus suburb, but Kiwan would commute to Sweida for work each morning and got trapped when the clashes erupted. She was on the phone with Kiwan when security forces questioned him and a colleague about whether they were affiliated with Druze militias. When her husband’s colleague raised his voice, she heard a gunshot. Kiwan was then shot while trying to appeal.
A Syrian Druze woman living in the United Arab Emirates said her mother, father, and sister were hiding in a basement in their home near the hospital, where they could hear the sound of shelling and bullets from outside. She spoke on condition of anonymity out of fear her family might be targeted.
Reports of killings and looting in Druze areas have been reported since Monday, with no official casualty figures released since Monday. The U.K.-based war monitor Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said more than 250 people had been killed as of Wednesday morning, including four children, five women, and 138 soldiers and security forces.
Interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa issued a statement condemning the violations, vowing that perpetrators, whether from individuals or organizations outside of the law, will be held accountable legally. Druze in the Golan gathered along the border fence to protest the violence against Druze in Syria. (AP)
