ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The US special envoy for Syria said Tuesday that Damascus has pledged full cooperation with the United Nations to investigate atrocities in Suwayda following tripartite talks in Amman with the Syrian and Jordanian top diplomats.
“Syria remains steadfastly committed to a united process that honors and protects all its constituencies, fostering a shared future for the Syrian people despite intervening forces seeking to disrupt and displace its communities,” US Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack said on X.
Barrack met Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani and his Jordanian counterpart Ayman Safadi in Amman on Tuesday to discuss the unrest in Syria’s southern Druze-majority Suwayda province, with violence still breaking out despite a US-brokered ceasefire.
Clashes first erupted on July 13 between Druze fighters and Bedouin tribes in Suwayda. The violence quickly escalated with the involvement of Syrian government forces and Israeli airstrikes in support of the Druze before a US-brokered ceasefire was declared on July 18.
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that nearly 1,400 people were killed before Syrian interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa on July 19 declared a ceasefire that led to a fragile truce.
“Syria will fully cooperate with the UN to investigate these crimes, including the horrific violence at Suwayda National Hospital,” Barrack stated.
A gruesome video emerged from Suwayda in recent days showing men in military uniforms executing medical staff inside a hospital in Suwayda. The video depicts a scene of armed men wearing Syrian security uniforms, with staff members kneeling in the hallway. One of them, Mohammad al-Bahsas, an engineer volunteering as a first responder, is seen being shot at close range, after which his body is dragged away.
Jordanian King Abdullah II also had two separate meetings with Barrack and Shaibani. He “reaffirmed Jordan’s support for Syria’s efforts to preserve its security, stability, sovereignty, and territorial integrity, noting the importance of Washington’s role in supporting the reconstruction process in Syria in a manner that preserves the rights of all Syrians,” according to a statement from his office.
Jordan and the US, in a joint statement, “agreed to respond to the Syrian government's request to establish a trilateral working group (Syrian–Jordanian–American) to support the Syrian government's efforts to consolidate the ceasefire.”
They also agreed to hold another meeting in the coming weeks.
In a separate statement, Shaibani stressed Syria’s “commitment to protect our people in Sweida from all components: Druze, Bedouins and Christians, and stress the need to firmly address any sectarian or inflammatory rhetoric emanating from anyone.”
“We reaffirm that justice begins with accountability, and we are committed to holding accountable anyone who has committed violations by any party, because accountability is the best path to the rule of law and justice,” he added.
On Tuesday, US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce told Rudaw's Diyar Kurda that “continual work has to be done” to bring Syrians together, praising Barrack for his efforts.
The new Syrian authorities that toppled Bashar al-Assad in December have vowed to uphold the rights of all components in the country. However, they have repeatedly faced criticism for failing to protect them.
The Suwayda unrest followed similar violence in early March, when violence broke out in the Alawite-majority coastal regions after Assad loyalists attacked security forces aligned with Syria’s interim leadership.
SOHR then reported about 1,700 deaths - mostly Alawite civilians - with many casualties attributed to government or pro-government forces.
