DAMASCUS (Reuters) -Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa promised to protect the rights of Druze citizens on Thursday as a ceasefire appeared to be holding in the country’s south following U.S. intervention to end fighting between government forces and Druze fighters.
Overnight, the Islamist-led government’s troops withdrew from the predominantly Druze city of Sweida, where scores of people have been killed in days of conflict pitting local fighters against the Damascus authorities and Bedouin tribes.
The violence in Syria escalated sharply on Wednesday as Israel launched airstrikes in Damascus while pressing attacks on government forces in the south, demanding they withdraw and saying Israel aimed to protect Syria’s Druze minority.
Describing Syria’s new rulers as barely disguised jihadists, Israel has bombed repeatedly this year, saying it will not allow Syrian government forces to deploy forces into areas near its frontier. Facing calls from Israel’s own Druze minority to shield Syria’s Druze, Israel has also seized ground in the south.
In a speech to the Syrian nation on Thursday, Sharaa said Israel had “consistently targeted our stability and created discord among us since the fall of the former regime”, accusing it of seeking to “dismantle the unity of our people”.
Reuters footage showed Syrian forces moving out of Sweida overnight. The situation in Sweida was calm on Thursday morning, according to two people in contact with residents there.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said late on Wednesday the United States had engaged all the parties involved. “We have agreed on specific steps that will bring this troubling and horrifying situation to an end tonight,” he said on social media.
The violence has underlined the challenges that Sharaa faces in stabilizing Syria and exerting centralised rule over the country, despite his warming ties with the United States and his administration’s evolving security contacts with Israel.
In his first televised statement after the outbreak of violence, Sharaa said protecting Druze citizens and their rights was “our priority” and rejected any attempt to drag Druze citizens into the hands of an “external party”.
“We have spent our lives facing challenges and defending our people, but we have put the interests of the Syrians before chaos and destruction,” he said.
ISRAELI STRIKES
Israel’s airstrikes on Wednesday blew up part of Syria’s defence ministry and hit near the presidential palace as it vowed to destroy government forces attacking Druze in southern Syria.
“We will not allow southern Syria to become a terror stronghold,” said Eyal Zamir, Israel’s military chief of staff.
The United Nations Security Council will meet on Thursday to address the conflict, diplomats said.
“The council must condemn the barbaric crimes committed against innocent civilians on Syrian soil,” said Israel’s ambassador to the U.N., Danny Danon. “Israel will continue to act resolutely against any terrorist threat on its borders, anywhere and at any time.”
The Syrian Network for Human Rights said 193 people had been killed in this week’s violence including six women and six children.
Sharaa faces challenges to stitch Syria back together in the face of deep misgivings from groups that fear Islamist rule. In March, mass killings of members of the Alawite minority exacerbated the mistrust.
Druze, followers of a religion that is an offshoot of Islam, are spread between Syria, Lebanon and Israel.
Scores of Israeli Druze broke through the border fence on Wednesday, linking up with Druze on the Syrian side.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged Israeli Druze citizens not to cross the border. The Israeli military said it was working to safely return civilians who had crossed.
(Reporting by Timour Azhari in Damascus, Maya Gebeily in Beirut, Muhammad Al Gebaly in Cairo and Reuters bureaux; Writing by Tom Perry and Michael Perry; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan and Ros Russell)
