Israeli intervention \u2018reignited tensions\u2019 in the city, with fighting there \u2018a dangerous turning point\u2019, President Ahmed al-Sharaa said
\n Druze
\nSyria\u2019s security forces have begun deploying in the restive southern province of Suwayda, a Ministry of Interior spokesperson has said, where heavy fighting between Druze and Bedouin armed groups and government forces has left hundreds dead, compounded by Israeli military intervention.
\nThe deployment on Saturday came hours after the United States announced that Israel and Syria have agreed to a ceasefire, an as yet uncertain truce amidst overnight fighting.
\nSyria\u2019s government announced the ceasefire early on Saturday, saying in a statement it is being enacted \u201cto spare Syrian blood, preserve the unity of Syrian territory, the safety of its people\u201d.
\nThe country\u2019s president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, in a televised address, stated that he \u201creceived international calls to intervene in what is happening in Suwayda and restore security to the country\u201d.
\nIsraeli intervention has \u201creignited tensions\u201d in the city, with fighting there \u201ca dangerous turning point\u201d, he said, also thanking the US for its support.
\nEarlier, Interior Ministry spokesman Noureddine al-Baba had said in a statement on Telegram that \u201cinternal security forces have begun deploying in Suwayda province \u2026 with the aim of protecting civilians and putting an end to the chaos.\u201d
\nEthnically charged clashes between Druze and Bedouin armed groups and government forces have reportedly left hundreds dead in recent days.
\nOn Wednesday, Israel launched heavy air attacks on Syria\u2019s Ministry of Defence in the heart of Damascus, and also hit Syrian government forces in the Suwayda region, claiming it had done so to protect the Druze, who it calls its \u201cbrothers\u201d.<\/p>\n
Communities in Suwayda are \u2018noble people\u2019
\n\u201cAl-Sharaa said that national unity was a priority for his government and that part of the role of the government was to be a neutral referee between all parties,\u201d said Al Jazeera\u2019s Mohamed Vall, reporting from the capital Damascus.
\n\u201cHe praised the people of Suwayda, other than the few elements that wanted to sow trouble, saying that both Druze and Arab communities in the city were noble people.\u201d
\nIt was unclear whether Syrian troops reached Suwayda city as of Saturday morning or were still on the city\u2019s outskirts, Vall said.
\nBedouin tribal fighters had been waiting to hear more from the government about the ceasefire, while Druze leaders have varying attitudes on it \u2013 some welcoming it, and others pledging to continue fighting, he added.
\nBedouin fighters in Damascus on Saturday were preparing to travel to the Druze-majority city to support Bedouin fighters there.
\nTaher al-Ahmad, one of the fighters, told Al Jazeera that their quarrel was with the forces loyal to Druze leader Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri, due to Israel\u2019s support for the Druze faction.
\n\u201cOur plan is not to enter Suwayda to destroy or attack locals. Our issue is with those who support the Druze leader who is aligned with the Israeli occupation,\u201d he said.
\nFighting has \u201cbeen going on throughout the night\u201d, but the deployment of Syria\u2019s internal security forces was \u201cwelcome news\u201d to many in the city, Vall said.
\nOn Friday, an Israeli official, who declined to be named, told reporters that in light of the \u201congoing instability in southwest Syria\u201d, Israel had agreed to allow the \u201climited entry of the [Syrian] internal security forces into Suwayda district for the next 48 hours\u201d.
\nAccording to Syria\u2019s Health Ministry, the death toll from fighting in the Druze-majority city is now at least 260. An estimated 80,000 people have fled the area, according to the International Organization for Migration.
\n\u201cA lot of extrajudicial killings [are] being reported,\u201d said Vall. \u201cPeople are suffering, even those who have been killed or forced to flee, they don\u2019t have electricity, they don\u2019t have water, because most of those services have been badly affected by the fighting.\u201d
\nOn Friday night, the Israeli army, in cooperation with a border guard unit, dispersed a \u201cviolent\u201d gathering of dozens of Druze holding Israeli citizenship near the border fence with Syria in the Majdal Shams area of the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. The Golan Heights are part of Syria, as recognised by the United Nations..
\nThe army said in a statement that a number of the demonstrators crossed the security fence into Syrian territory, with Israel now working to return them.<\/p>\n
\u2018Zero-sum formula of territorial expansion and concurrent wars\u2019
\nThe Reuters news agency on Saturday reported that Syria\u2019s government misread how Israel would respond to its troops deploying to the country\u2019s south this week, encouraged by US messaging that Syria should be governed as a centralised state.
\nDamascus believed it had a green light from both the US and Israel to dispatch its forces south to Suwayda, despite months of Israeli warnings not to do so, Reuters reported, quoting several sources, including Syrian political and military officials, two diplomats, and regional security sources.
\nThat understanding was based on public and private comments from US special envoy for Syria Thomas Barrack, as well as security talks with Israel, the sources said.
\nAnalysts say Israel\u2019s attacks have \u201cless to do with the minority Druze community and more with a strategic Israeli objective to create a new reality,\u201d said Al Jazeera\u2019s Nour Odeh.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s part of Israel trying to show that it is the hegemonic power in the Middle East.\u201d
\nShe added: \u201cIt\u2019s a zero-sum formula of territorial expansion and concurrent wars. Endless war on Gaza, relentless attacks on Lebanon, strikes on Yemen, threats of resumed hostilities with Iran and in Syria, territorial expansion, [and] direct military intervention.
\n\u201cThis contradicts the Trump administration\u2019s declared policy of seeking to expand normalisation deals with Israel in the region, which the new government in Syria had welcomed and entertained before this crisis,\u201d said Odeh.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Israeli intervention \u2018reignited tensions\u2019 in the city, with fighting there \u2018a dangerous turning point\u2019, President Ahmed al-Sharaa said Druze Syria\u2019s security forces have begun deploying in the restive southern province of Suwayda, a Ministry of Interior spokesperson has said, where heavy fighting between Druze and Bedouin armed groups and government forces has left hundreds dead, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":491402,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-491381","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-world"],"yoast_head":"\n