ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Syrian government said on Friday it will deploy a specialized force to end clashes in the Druze-majority south that have left hundreds dead.
“The competent authorities are working to deploy a specialized force to end the clashes and resolve the conflict on the ground, alongside political and security measures aimed at stabilizing the situation and ensuring the return of calm to the provinces as quickly as possible,” read a statement from the Syrian presidency.
Fighting erupted on Sunday between Druze groups and Sunni Bedouin tribes in the southern province of Suwayda, which has been under the control of armed Druze groups since the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in December. Syria’s defense and interior ministries deployed forces, along with affiliated armed factions, but on Wednesday, after Israeli bombardment, interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa announced the withdrawal of state forces.
Clashes have continued and 638 people have been killed as of Friday, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The Syrian presidency expressed “deep concern and great regret” over the deadly unrest. It accused “armed groups operating outside the law” of imposing “de facto control” and endangering civilians, including “children, women, and the elderly,” the statement added.
“Do not respond to chaos with more chaos but instead protect law through law and counter aggression with justice, not vengeance,” it said.
“The Druze sect and Bedouin tribes in the south are not a sect or group unto themselves” and must be “under one roof, under the nation,” it added.
A ceasefire, announced by the Defense Ministry following an agreement with Druze leaders, was supposed to take effect on Thursday. The spiritual leader of Syria's Druze community, Hikmat al-Hajari, said they were pressured into making the deal and warned that they are facing “extermination.”
