Syria's security forces stand on a tank in the predominantly Druze city of Sweida on July 15, 2025, following clashes between Bedouin tribes and Druze fighters. (Credit: AFP/BAKR ALKASEM)
Someone is kidnapped and suddenly everything ignites. Fighting has seized southern Syria's predominantly Druze Sweida province since Sunday, sparked by the abduction of a Druze merchant by a Bedouin tribe at an improvised checkpoint along the road from Sweida city to Damascus.A few hours later, the man was released, his body marked with signs of torture. Members of his community were quick to respond, descending on the Bedouin neighborhood of al-Maqous in Sweida and several outlying villages. The result of the ensuing violence was 37 killed, including two children, according to local observers, by the time the sun went down that day.As the violence spiraled, Syria's interior minister, Anas Khattab, announced on Sunday evening that the new government's security forces would intervene in Sweida and “establish security.” The...
Someone is kidnapped and suddenly everything ignites. Fighting has seized southern Syria's predominantly Druze Sweida province since Sunday, sparked by the abduction of a Druze merchant by a Bedouin tribe at an improvised checkpoint along the road from Sweida city to Damascus.A few hours later, the man was released, his body marked with signs of torture. Members of his community were quick to respond, descending on the Bedouin neighborhood of al-Maqous in Sweida and several outlying villages. The result of the ensuing violence was 37 killed, including two children, according to local observers, by the time the sun went down that day.As the violence spiraled, Syria's interior minister, Anas Khattab, announced on Sunday evening that the new government's security forces would intervene in Sweida and “establish security.”...
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