Damascus (Syria), July 14 (LaPresse) – Clashes between Druze militias and Bedouin clans in Syria’s southern province of Sweida have left at least 37 people dead and nearly 100 injured. Government forces have been deployed to the area to restore order.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that at least 37 people were killed in the fighting, including two children. The UK-based monitor added that military convoys were sent to the area to reinforce security checkpoints.
The violence erupted after a series of kidnappings between the two groups, sparked by the abduction and robbery of a young Druze vegetable vendor by members of a local Bedouin tribe who set up a roadblock, assaulted him, and stole his belongings.
In a statement, the Interior Ministry described the situation as a dangerous escalation occurring “in the absence of the relevant official institutions, which has led to increased chaos, a worsening of security conditions, and the inability of the local community to contain the situation despite repeated calls for calm.”
Factions of the Druze minority remain distrustful of the new authorities in Damascus following the fall of former president Bashar Assad.
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