SUWAYDA, Syria — Southern Syria's Suwayda province, close to Daraa, the cradle of the protests, is no longer removed from the battles ravaging other parts of the country. In the province, over which calm had prevailed since March 2011, the village of Dama witnessed a series of clashes beginning Aug. 16 between Druze residents supported by the Popular Committees and the pro-regime National Defense Forces (NDF) and Sunni-armed Bedouin groups backed by Jabhat al-Nusra as well as other armed opposition battalions stationed in al-Lajat, which borders Baraa and Suwayda.

On the outskirts of Suwayda city, the checkpoints of the local committees and NDF search for cameras, laptops or anything else considered a threat to the authorities. They ask why visitors are there. If the answer is not convincing, they will likely take personal identity cards to check whether visitors are wanted by the authorities.

Suwayda's entrances are decorated with pictures of President Bashar al-Assad and slogans supporting the army and NDF. Only a few shops were open, as most of the city’s residents were preoccupied with the funerals of victims of the clashes with the Bedouins. Massive crowds gathered on the main road to pay their respects.

The confrontations were ignited by the Aug. 14 arrest of Bedouin leader Jamal Belaas. Bedouin groups responded on Aug. 16 by attacking a car in the area between Dama and al-Ariqah in Suwayda, which is a Bedouin zone. The car's passengers were injured and the driver was killed, activist Rami Ismail told Al-Monitor in a small cafe in the old city. Ismail said the incident prompted NDF members to target Bedouin gatherings, and Bedouin gunmen responded by storming the Druze villages of Dama and Deir Dama, kidnapping some members of the Popular Committees and raising the banners of Jabhat al-Nusra.