Why is Israel bombing Syria and why are they defending the Druze?
At least 15 people died after Israel targeted Syria’s military HQ and Defence Ministry, amid clashes in the Druze majority Sweida region. Why did this new conflict start and how will it end?
Technically at war with Syria for decades, Israel has said it would not accept the presence of forces of the Islamist-led government in the country’s south, which borders the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
At the same time, Israel claims to protect the Druze, a minority religious group with long-established ties to Israel.
The Israeli military began its strikes as Syrian government forces deployed to the heartland of the Druze minority in the southern province of Sweida, following deadly clashes between Druze fighters and Bedouin tribes.
It went on to bomb the headquarters of Syria’s military in Damascus, killing at least 15 people. So far, more than 300 people have been killed in the clashes since Sunday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights estimates.
How did it begin?
Clashes began on Sunday between Druze religious minority factions and Bedouin tribes, who are Sunni Muslim, killing more than 100 people.
The two sides have a longstanding feud in Sweida.
Government forces sent reinforcements to the region, in the country’s south, saying they want to re-establish security.
But according to witnesses, Druze armed groups and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor, government forces and allied groups including Bedouins took control on Monday of several villages near Sweida previously run by Druze fighters.
On Tuesday, following contacts between Damascus authorities and notables from Sweida, the Syrian Defence Ministry announced a ceasefire after government forces had entered the city. Before then, Sweida, home to about 150,000 people, was controlled by various Druze factions.
Syria’s three main Druze spiritual leaders, who sometimes differ on political issues, called on local fighters on Tuesday to lay down their arms.
However, Hikmat al-Hijri, one of the leaders, then accused Damascus of failing to uphold its commitment to enter Sweida peacefully, and called for “resisting this brutal campaign by all available means”.
Terrified Sweida residents have reported numerous abuses since the entry of government troops and their allies, including executions, looting and burning houses.
A future for the Druze?
The new Islamist authorities, who seized power after overthrowing Bashar al-Assad in December, had demanded the dissolution of all armed groups and their integration into the forces of the Defence Ministry.
During Syria’s 14-year civil war, which started after Assad’s violent repression of peaceful protests in 2011, the Druze formed their own armed groups to protect their heartland in Sweida away from major battles.
In January, the two largest groups, the Men of Dignity movement and the Mountain Brigade, said they were ready to join the new national army.
“The state has been stalling the implementation of this agreement,” Men of Dignity spokesman Bassem Fakhr said.
Aside from the Druze, the Kurds, who control vast territories in the northeast, boast a powerful armed wing, the Syrian Democratic Forces, and are negotiating with Damascus for their integration into the armed forces.
Before the war, the Druze in Syria numbered about 700,000, or 3 per cent of the population. The Druze are followers of an esoteric religion that split from Shiite Islam, and are mainly found in Syria, Lebanon and Israel.
Why is Israel involved?
Since the fall of Assad, Israel expanded its overture to Syria’s Druze through notable Israeli co-religionists.
It sent humanitarian parcels and allowed delegations of religious dignitaries to go to Israel on pilgrimage, despite an official state of war with Syria.
In March, Israel expressed its intention to defend the Druze following skirmishes in the suburbs of Damascus, but these remarks were immediately rejected by Druze dignitaries, who reaffirmed their commitment to the unity of Syria.
Israel has bombed several Syrian military positions in Sweida since Monday. On Wednesday, Israel said it struck the headquarters of the Syrian army in Damascus, a compound that also houses the Defence Ministry.
Syrian state television reported further Israeli strikes on the army headquarters compound, where a wing of the four-storey building was destroyed.
The health ministry said at least 15 people died in the strikes.
The official Syrian news agency SANA also announced an Israeli drone strike on the predominantly Druze city of Sweida, home to the country’s largest Druze community.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz on Wednesday demanded that Syrian forces withdraw from the south.
He promised that troops would “operate forcefully in Sweida to eliminate the forces that attacked the Druze until their full withdrawal”.
Mr Katz and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday said they “are acting to prevent the Syrian regime from harming them and to ensure the demilitarisation of the area adjacent to our border with Syria”.
What is Israel’s relationship with the new Syrian government?
Not good. After Ahmed al-Sharaa’s new government took power, Israel lobbied to keep the group designated as terrorists.
However, US President Donald Trump has lifted the “terrorist” label, dropped sanctions and welcomed Damascus to the international fold in a move that has not gone down well in Jerusalem.
On Wednesday, two Israeli ministers called on the Israel Defence Forces to “eliminate” Mr Sharaa.
“We must not stand idly by in the face of the Islamist-Nazi terror regime of al-Qa’ida in a suit and tie,” said Amichai Chikli, Israel’s Minister of Diaspora Affairs.
“Anyone who thinks Ahmad al-Shara is a legitimate leader is gravely mistaken – he is a terrorist, a barbaric murderer who should be eliminated without delay,” he said.
What happens next?
Who knows? Damascus has said it is withdrawing forces from Sweida but Israel is reported to be continuing strikes.
Mr Trump, who has said he wants to give Mr Sharaa and Syria a “chance to succeed”, is reported to be angry that Israel has attacked Syria.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio says he’s “very concerned”, although he has expressed hopes that a ceasefire may hold.
AFP
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