As Bedouins mobilize, clashes with Druze resume in Syria’s Suwayda: What to know
Despite a ceasefire agreement, fighting involving the government, Bedouin clans and Druze fighters spiraled on Friday.
Fighting continued between Bedouin and Druze fighters in southern Syria’s Suwayda on Friday, according to a war monitor, as the Syrian government denied reports that it had redeployed troops to the area.
What happened: The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that armed clashes occurred on Friday between Bedouin gunmen and local factions in the village of Walgha, located about 5.5 kilometers (3.4 miles) northwest of Suwayda city. There were no casualties as of approximately 2:00 p.m. local time (7:00 a.m. EST), according to the UK-based war monitor.
Syria’s Interior Ministry said on Friday there is “no truth” to reports that internal security forces had entered the province of Suwayda, the official news outlet SANA reported. Reuters reported earlier on Friday that Syrian security forces were preparing to redeploy in the Druze-majority city of Suwayda in response to the fighting with Bedouin tribes.
Bedouin armed groups gathered in the villages of Ta’ara, al-Dour, al-Duwaira and al-Tayra in the Suwayda countryside on Thursday after Syrian Defense Ministry forces withdrew from the area. That evening, the UK-based war monitor reported that an Israeli drone struck Bedouin fighters who were attacking Walgha. The Israeli military did not comment.
