Syrian-Israeli Agreement for Ceasefire Amid Ongoing Clashes in Sweida

SadaNews - U.S. envoy to Syria Thomas Bark announced an agreement for a ceasefire between Syria and Israel, while clashes continue in Sweida between Druze groups opposing Damascus and armed tribesmen.

Bark stated in a tweet on X platform early Saturday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Syrian President Ahmad al-Shara agreed - with U.S. support - to the ceasefire.

He added that the agreement between Israel and Syria has been endorsed by Turkey, Jordan, and their neighbors.

The U.S. envoy urged the Druze, Bedouins, and Sunnis to lay down their arms and work with other minorities to build a new, unified Syrian identity and foster peace and prosperity with their neighbors.

The announcement of the agreement follows three days of Israeli bombardment targeting sovereign sites in Damascus and Syrian forces in Sweida (southern Syria).

Israel has carried out intense airstrikes in Sweida supporting Druze factions that Syrian forces attempted to expel from the area, before they were forced to withdraw entirely from the province due to the Israeli bombardment.

By dawn on Thursday, Syrian army and security forces ended their withdrawal from Sweida following diplomatic maneuvers leading to the ceasefire announcement.

However, the withdrawal of Syrian forces allowed opposition Druze factions to attack areas inhabited by Bedouin Arab tribes in the city of Sweida and its countryside, resulting in "massacres" and the displacement of thousands, according to Syrian authorities, leading the tribes to launch an attack against the Druze factions.

New Agreement

Meanwhile, the German news agency reported - citing Syrian media reports - that a new agreement has been reached for the deployment of Syrian security forces throughout the province of Sweida.

According to these reports, the agreement was reached early today between the Syrian government on one side and Druze elder sheikhs and armed Druze factions in Sweida on the other.

The agreement - according to the same sources - mandates the surrender of heavy weapons and the integration of faction members into forces under the Syrian Ministries of Interior and Defense.

The Syrian presidency announced last night that relevant authorities are working to send a force to de-escalate tensions and resolve the conflict in Sweida alongside political and security measures.

The presidency stated - in a statement - that the events it described as unfortunate in southern Syria are caused by groups operating outside the law using weapons to impose a new reality.

The Syrian presidency called on all parties to exercise restraint, emphasizing efforts to stop the fighting and monitor violations, and condemned attacks on safe families and assaults on people's dignity.

Reuters reported that their correspondents saw a convoy of forces from the Syrian Ministry of Interior on a road in Daraa province to the east of Sweida, and quoted a security source stating that the forces are awaiting the green light to enter Sweida.

Clashes in Sweida

Concurrently, a source in the Ministry of Interior confirmed to Syrian news that internal security forces prevented the entry of any armed convoys towards the city of Sweida via the routes from Damascus and Daraa.

This comes after a correspondent from Al Jazeera in Sweida reported that tribal forces are now at the outskirts of Sweida city after capturing several nearby towns and cities.

Reuters also reported that thousands of tribal fighters are still flowing into Sweida as of last Friday, amid ongoing clashes on the outskirts of the city.

They quoted Rayan Ma'arouf, the editor-in-chief of the (Sweida 24) news site and residents, stating that fighting continues in the northern and western parts of the province.

For its part, the French Press Agency reported that around 200 armed tribesmen clashed last Friday evening at the western entrance of Sweida with Druze militants present in the city.

Residents of Sweida reported having limited quantities of food and water, and power has been off in the city for several days.

The Syrian Ministry of Health reported yesterday that 260 people have been killed and 1,698 injured in the clashes in Sweida, while the Syrian Network for Human Rights documented the deaths of 321 individuals during the fighting since last Sunday, including medical workers, women, and children.

The network stated that these figures include field executions by all parties.