Renewed sectarian clashes in south Syria kill four

Renewed sectarian clashes in southern Syria's Druze-majority Sweida province killed at least four people on Sunday, a war monitor said, in the first deadly incident since a cease-fire last month.

The province witnessed deadly clashes between Druze fighters and Sunni Bedouins in July that drew the intervention of government forces and tribal fighters who came to support the Bedouins.

A cease-fire put an end to the week of bloodshed – which killed 1,400 people, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights – but the situation remained tense, flaring into violence again on Sunday.

SOHR said three Syrian security forces personnel were killed "as clashes erupted with local factions around Tal Hadid in the western Sweida countryside."

SOHR also reported the death of a "local fighter."

Tal Hadid is a "key control point" at a relatively high altitude, according to the monitor, allowing whoever controls it to overlook neighbouring areas.

Fighting also erupted around the city of Thaala, the Observatory said, "following bombardment of the area with shells and heavy weapons launched from areas under the control of government forces, while the sound of explosions and gunfire was heard in various parts of Sweida city."

Syrian state-run news agency SANA accused Druze groups loyal to influential spiritual leader Hikmat al-Hijri of breaching the cease-fire by attacking government troops in Tal Hadid, killing one security forces officer and injuring others.

Government forces took back control of Tal Hadid after the morning clashes, according to the Observatory.

'Force inhabitants to comply'

According to SOHR and Sweida locals, Damascus has been imposing a siege on the province, with SOHR saying the government wants to "force inhabitants to comply."

On Friday, Sweida residents held protests across the province to demand the withdrawal of government forces and the opening of an aid corridor from neighbouring Jordan.

The road linking Sweida to Damascus has been cut off since July 20.

Damascus accuses Druze groups of cutting it, but the Observatory says armed groups allied with the government took control of the area and have been blocking travel.

The United Nations was able to send some aid convoys to the province, but an interior ministry source told Syrian state television on Sunday that the humanitarian corridor was temporarily closed "until the area is secured after outlaw groups violated the cease-fire."

Syria's minority communities have expressed concerns for their safety since December, when an Islamist-led offensive toppled longtime Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad, who had presented himself as a protector of minorities.

While the new Syrian authorities have repeatedly stated their intent to protect all of the country's ethnic and religious groups, the killing of more 1,400 Alawites along the coast and the violence in Sweida have raised doubts about their ability to manage sectarian tensions.

The government has said it will investigate July's violence Sweida, and a committee in charge of the inquiry held its first meeting on Saturday.