Syria and Druze Leaders Announce Renewed Ceasefire Amid Clashes and Israeli Strikes

Syrian government officials and leaders from the Druze religious minority announced a renewed ceasefire on Wednesday following days of violent clashes in the southern city of Sweida, where fighting between government forces, Druze militias, and local Sunni Bedouin tribes has threatened to derail Syria’s fragile postwar transition and drawn military intervention from neighboring Israel. Despite the ceasefire, Israeli airstrikes continued, including rare strikes in central Damascus, targeting military sites. Convoys of Syrian government troops began withdrawing from Sweida, though it remained unclear if the ceasefire would hold, as a previous agreement collapsed swiftly and was rejected by a key Druze leader, Sheikh Hikmat Al-Hijri.

The recent escalation began with tit-for-tat attacks between Druze and Sunni armed factions, prompting the government to intervene militarily. Some government actions targeted civilians, worsening sectarian tensions. The violence presents the most serious challenge yet to Syria’s new leadership under interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa, who came to power after Islamist insurgents ousted former President Bashar Assad in December, ending nearly 14 years of civil war. In a televised address, al-Sharaa emphasized national unity, denounced Israel’s involvement as a tactic to sow division, and called for local Druze leaders to maintain security in Sweida to prevent renewed conflict.

Israel’s military campaign escalated with dozens of strikes in Sweida and central Damascus, including one that hit the Defense Ministry headquarters and another near the presidential palace. Syrian officials reported at least three deaths and 34 injuries from the Damascus strike. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned of continued and intensified attacks if Syrian forces did not withdraw, and the military began relocating a brigade from Gaza to the Golan Heights. An Israeli military official said they were preparing for “a multitude of scenarios.”

The Syrian Defense Ministry blamed Druze militias for violating Tuesday’s ceasefire. Reports continued to emerge of civilian casualties and human rights abuses. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported over 300 people killed as of Wednesday morning, including children, women, and over 160 government soldiers and security forces. The observatory also documented at least 27 field executions and shared evidence of atrocities on both sides, including videos of captured fighters being abused and homes being burned or looted.

In Damascus suburbs and abroad, Druze civilians and their families expressed fear and anguish over loved ones caught in the violence. Evelyn Azzam, a young woman in Jaramana, described how her husband Robert Kiwan was shot by security forces while working in Sweida. She has not been able to confirm his condition since his hospitalization. Druze women living in the United Arab Emirates also recounted desperate attempts to contact family members hiding from shelling and reported the possible loss of entire families in burned homes.

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The conflict echoes previous tragedies such as the 2018 Islamic State attack on Sweida, where Druze civilians had taken up arms in the absence of government protection. More than half of the estimated 1 million Druze worldwide live in Syria, with significant populations in Lebanon and Israel. Tensions have also flared in the Golan Heights, where Druze residents gathered along the border fence in protest of violence against their community in Syria.

Amid the chaos, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed concern over the Israel-Syria hostilities, attributing the flare-up to a “misunderstanding” and stating that Washington is in contact with both sides to help restore calm.