After SDF agreement, Syria's Sharaa meets Druze leaders seeking deal
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Walid Jumblatt (L), the Druze former leader of Lebanon's Progressive Socialist Party (PSP), attends a meeting with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) leader Ahmed al-Sharaa (C) and other Syrian Druze leaders during a visit to Damascus, on Dec. 22, 2024. — AFP via Getty Images
Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa met with leaders from the predominantly Druze Suwayda province on Tuesday to discuss fair representation in the country. The sit-down occurred amid speculation of a deal to integrate the province into state institutions and followed an agreement between the transitional government and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces.
Sharaa received Suwayda Gov. Mustafa Al-Bakour and a number of activists from the province in Damascus. Syria's official news outlet, SANA, reported that the two sides discussed unspecified domestic and local issues. They stressed the importance of "justice, law and fair representation" for all Syrians, as well as the "plots being hatched against the unity of Syria, its land and people."
— رئاسة الجمهورية العربية السورية (@SyPresidency) March 11, 2025
While some Arabic media outlets said on Tuesday that a deal was reached to merge Druze factions from Suwayda into the Ministry of Defense and for the new authorities to appoint a police chief and two deputies in the province, with one deputy to be selected from the local Druze population, Al-Monitor could not confirm this. SANA and a statement from the Syrian presidency did not mention any agreement had been reached.
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