More than 30 people were killed and nearly 100 others injured during clashes between armed Bedouin tribal fighters and Druze militias in the southern Syrian governorate of Sweida, according to the initial reports from the Interior Ministry on Monday.
The ministry expressed deep concern and sorrow over the “bloody developments” that took place between “local armed groups and tribes” in Sweida’s Al-Maqous neighborhood on late Sunday.
“In this context, the Ministry of Interior confirms that units of its forces, in coordination with the Ministry of Defense, will intervene directly in the region to resolve the conflict, stop clashes, impose security, prosecute those responsible for the events, and refer them to the competent judiciary,” it added.
According to the state news agency SANA, a number of army forces deployed in the area also lost their lives while trying to protect the civilian population from the outlawed groups.
Syrian Interior Minister Anas Khattab called “the absence of state institutions, particularly military and security ones” the main reason behind the ongoing tensions in the southern governorate of Sweida and its countryside.
“There is no solution to this except imposing security (measures) and activating the role of institutions to ensure civil peace and the return of life to its normal state in all its details,” Khattab said on his X account.
On late Sunday, armed clashes broke out between local Bedouin tribes and Druze militias in Suwayda, resulting in the deaths and injuries of civilians and militia members.
Bashar al-Assad, Syria’s leader for nearly 25 years, fled to Russia in December, ending the Baath Party regime, which had been in power since 1963.
A new transitional administration led by President Ahmad al-Sharaa was formed in Syria in January.
The village of al-Tira also witnessed a mass exodus after being targeted with mortar shells by militants from the Lajat tribes, who later invaded the village and burned several of its homes. A field source reported that the town's residents took refuge in villages in the al-Mazra'a district and Sweida city, leaving behind defensive groups trying to repel the attacks. Shelling also targeted the towns of Sami' and al-Mazra'a, and intermittent clashes erupted at a police checkpoint in the Baraq area, where mortar shells were fired, leading to direct confrontations with security forces.
Amid the escalation, Sweida Governor Mustafa al-Bakour called for "restraint and resort to dialogue." Meanwhile, Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri, the spiritual leader of the Druze community, issued an urgent appeal to halt the fighting, stressing that the blood of the people of Sweida is a "red line." He emphasized that the ongoing battle "is not the real battle of the people of Sweida," calling for the restoration of civil peace.
Despite intensive tribal and religious efforts to contain the crisis, activists warn of the complexity of the situation due to misleading social media, the multiplicity of armed factions with different agendas, and the absence of decisive government intervention. Activist Jihad Shihab al-Din believes that "the social infrastructure is collapsing, and every bullet fired today digs a grave for the heritage of coexistence." He added that "only political solutions can build nations."
Syria’s Druze population numbers about 700,000, with Sweida home to the sect’s largest community.
Bedouin and Druze factions have a longstanding feud in Sweida, with violence occasionally erupting.
Since the overthrow of longtime Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad in December, concerns have been raised over the rights and safety of minorities under the new authorities, who have also struggled to re-establish security more broadly.
Clashes between troops and Druze fighters in April and May killed dozens of people, with local leaders and religious figures signing agreements to contain the escalation and better integrate Druze fighters into the new government.
Agencies
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