Damascus (BN24) – Syrian officials and Druze religious leaders announced a renewed ceasefire Wednesday after days of fierce clashes in southern Syria that have jeopardized the country’s fragile postwar transition and triggered Israeli military intervention.
Convoys of Syrian government forces began withdrawing from the city of Sweida under the agreement, which was announced by the Interior Ministry and in a video statement from Druze religious authorities. But it was unclear whether the truce would hold: an earlier ceasefire collapsed within hours, and influential Druze cleric Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri publicly rejected the new deal.
Even as officials declared the ceasefire, Israeli warplanes continued to strike Syrian targets.
The escalation reached new heights as Israel carried out rare airstrikes deep in the Syrian capital. One barrage targeted the Ministry of Defense headquarters, a prominent building near a busy square that has become a symbol of the country’s attempt to rebuild after the fall of Bashar al-Assad in December. Another strike hit near the presidential palace in the hills outside Damascus.
Syrian state media reported that at least three people were killed and 34 injured in the Damascus attacks.
Israel said the operations were intended to defend Syria’s Druze minority—seen in Israel as a potential ally—from both Islamist militant factions and government troops. The Druze community forms a significant minority in Israel and Syria and has long been viewed by Israeli leaders as a bridge between the countries.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz called the strikes the start of “painful blows” and warned Damascus that the army would intensify attacks unless Syrian troops withdrew from Druze areas. “The army will continue to attack regime forces until they leave,” Katz said in a statement.
An Israeli military official, speaking anonymously under regulations, confirmed that thousands of troops were being redeployed from Gaza to the Golan Heights in anticipation of further escalation.
The violence erupted after tit-for-tat abductions and attacks between Sunni Bedouin tribes and Druze militias in Sweida, a historically Druze province. When government forces deployed to restore order, they clashed with local fighters and were accused of carrying out reprisal attacks against civilians.
The fighting has become the most serious threat so far to the new Sunni-led authorities attempting to solidify power in Syria. The government, which replaced Assad’s rule after more than a decade of war, has faced suspicion and hostility from minorities, including the Druze and the Alawites, Assad’s own sect.
No updated official death toll was released Wednesday. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least 300 people have been killed since Monday, including children, women, and more than 160 soldiers and security personnel.
Interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa condemned the bloodshed in a statement Wednesday, saying “criminal and illegal actions cannot be accepted under any circumstances.” He promised those responsible for abuses would be prosecuted.
Across Syria and in the diaspora, Druze families were desperate for news of relatives caught in the fighting.
In the Damascus suburb of Jaramana, 20-year-old Evelyn Azzam said she feared her husband, Robert Kiwan, was dead. Azzam had been speaking to Kiwan by phone when security forces stopped him and a colleague on suspicion of supporting Druze militias. She heard gunshots as her husband was shot in the hip.
“Since then, we have no idea what has happened,” she said in tears.
Other Druze who fled to the United Arab Emirates said they could hear shelling over the phone when speaking to relatives hiding in basements.
One woman told The Associated Press her cousin’s house had been set on fire with family members still inside. “It’s the same as when ISIS came in 2018,” she said.
Videos circulating online showed graphic scenes of violence: government-aligned fighters shaving Druze sheikhs’ mustaches, stepping on Druze flags, and desecrating portraits of religious figures. Other footage appeared to show Druze militiamen beating captured soldiers and posing with their bodies.
The Syrian Observatory said at least 27 people were killed in summary executions.
Israel’s intervention has expanded rapidly in recent days. The military has launched dozens of strikes targeting government convoys heading toward Sweida and installations across southern Syria.
Israel also took control of a U.N.-patrolled buffer zone along the border with the Golan Heights, territory it captured from Syria in 1967 and later annexed.
Defense Minister Katz said Israel would continue airstrikes and was prepared to escalate further if Syrian troops did not withdraw.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington was “very concerned” by the violence, describing it as the result of a “misunderstanding.”
Rubio said American diplomats were in contact with both Damascus and Jerusalem to try to de-escalate the crisis.
Meanwhile, Druze communities in the Israeli-occupied Golan gathered along the border fence to protest attacks on their relatives.
For Syria’s new leadership, the Sweida crisis underscores the precariousness of postwar governance. After Assad’s ouster, authorities promised to unify the country and include minorities. But clashes with Druze fighters and reports of sectarian killings have deepened mistrust.
Political analyst Samy Akil told Al Jazeera the government’s failure to deliver an inclusive power-sharing arrangement is fueling the unrest.
“They have not backed up their rhetoric with any real guarantees to protect minorities,” he said. “That’s why we’re seeing this explosive violence now.”
