Over 30 Dead in Syria as Druze Militias and Sunni Bedouin Clans Face Off

DAMASCUS – In Syria’s Sweida province, more than 30 fatalities and nearly 100 injuries have resulted from conflicts between local militias and clans. Authorities reported that troops were dispatched to the location to re-establish order.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights indicated that the skirmishes have caused at least 37 deaths, two of whom were children. These clashes involved armed factions from the Druze religious community and Sunni Bedouin clans within the region. The U.K.-based organization observed military deployments enhancing security checkpoints in the area.

According to the observatory, the violence erupted following a kidnapping spree by both factions. Initial tensions began when Bedouin tribe members established a checkpoint, where they assaulted and robbed a young Druze man.

Rami Abdurrahman, who heads the observatory, said the conflict started with the kidnapping and robbery of a Druze vegetable seller, leading to tit-for-tat attacks and kidnappings.

Syria’s defense and interior ministries were deploying personnel to the area to attempt to restore order.

The interior ministry in a statement called the situation a dangerous escalation that “comes in the absence of the relevant official institutions, which has led to an exacerbation of the state of chaos, the deterioration of the security situation, and the inability of the local community to contain the situation despite repeated calls for calm.”

Factions from the Druze minority have been suspicious of the new authorities in Damascus after former President Bashar Assad fell in a lightning rebel offensive led by Sunni Islamist insurgent groups in December. Earlier this year, Druze groups in Sweida clashed with security forces from the new government.

The Druze religious sect is a minority group that began as a 10th-century offshoot of Ismailism, a branch of Shiite Islam. In Syria, they largely live in the southern Sweida province and some suburbs of Damascus, mainly in Jaramana and Ashrafiyat Sahnaya to the south.

The Druze developed their own militias during the country’s nearly 14-year civil war. Since Assad’s fall, different Druze factions have been at odds over whether to integrate with the new government and armed forces.