Syria's interim president, Ahmad al-Shara, called on Sunni Bedouin tribes to "fully commit" to a ceasefire with Druze militias, whose clashes have killed hundreds of people in recent days and threatened to destabilize the entire country.
It comes after government forces, who had sided with the Bedouins against the Druze, redeployed to quell renewed fighting that erupted late Thursday. There were reports that fighters affiliated with the Syrian government had executed Druze civilians and looted and burned homes during the four-day violence.
The violence also sparked airstrikes on Syrian forces by neighboring Israel, which targeted the Defense Ministry in Damascus.
In his second televised address since the fighting began, al-Shara blamed "armed groups from Sweida" for reigniting the conflict by "launching revenge attacks on Bedouins and their families." He also said the Israeli intervention had "pushed the country into a dangerous phase."
Addressing the Bedouins, al-Shara said that "they cannot replace the role of the state in resolving the country's affairs and restoring security." He added that he thanked the Bedouins for their heroic stance, but demanded that they fully commit to the ceasefire and respect state orders.
Sharrah reiterated that "Suwayda remains an integral part of the Syrian state and that the Druze represent a fundamental pillar of the Syrian national fabric," pledging to protect all minorities in Syria. He also thanked the US for its role in supporting Syria during these difficult times, as well as Arab countries and Turkey.
US envoy for Syria Tom Barak announced early today that Israel and Syria had agreed to a ceasefire, but al-Shara did not directly mention the agreement in his speech, instead saying that "the US and Arab countries intervened" to restore peace.
Meanwhile, prominent Druze leader Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri, who opposes the current government and has distanced himself from two previous ceasefires, said the agreement, reached under the auspices of the guarantor states, contains several measures aimed at de-escalating tensions in Suwayda.
This includes establishing checkpoints outside the province's administrative borders to contain clashes and prevent attacks, a 48-hour ban on entry by any party into border villages, and safe, guaranteed passage for the remaining Bedouin tribesmen still inside the province.
More than half of the world's approximately one million Druze live in Syria. Most of the remaining Druze live in Lebanon and Israel, including the Golan Heights, which Israel captured and took over from Syria in the 1967 Six-Day War.
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