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Sectarian clashes in Syria leave at least 30 dead and scores injured Syria: Clashes between Druze and Bedouin in south kill 30
(about 7 hours later)
Members of Syrian security forces stand guard following clashes in Sweida province in May Syrian security forces stand guard following clashes in Suweida province in May (File photo)
At least 30 people have been killed in clashes in southern Syria as authorities sent forces to de-escalate the situation. At least 30 people have been killed in armed clashes between Sunni Bedouin tribal fighters and Druze militias in southern Syria, the country's interior ministry says.
Scores of people were also injured in the violence between Bedouin Sunni tribes and fighters from the Druze religious minority in the city of Sweida. The violence erupted in the predominantly Druze city in the province of Suweida on Sunday, two days after a Druze merchant was reportedly abducted on the highway to Damascus.
Syria's interior ministry said at least 30 people were killed, while the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor, put the death toll at 37. The interior ministry called the situation "a dangerous escalation" and said security forces were being deployed to try to restore calm.
Fighting between different minority groups has escalated since the collapse of the Assad regime in December. It is the latest outbreak of deadly sectarian violence in the country since Islamist-led rebel forces overthrew President Bashar al-Assad in December.
A new Islamic-led government is working to establish control within the country, which remains in a fragile situation. Syria's many minority communities - including the Druze, whose religion is an offshoot of Shia Islam with its own unique identity and beliefs - have expressed concerns over the new authorities' pledges to protect them.
At the end of last year, Sunni Islamist-rebels led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) stormed Damascus. They toppled President Bashar al-Assad, whose family had ruled the country for 54 years. Sunday's clashes between Bedouin tribesmen and Druze militias began in the al-Maqwas neighbourhood of Suweida city.
Syria's interior ministry said early on Monday its forces would directly intervene to resolve the conflict and halt the clashes, which it said had left 100 injured. The area, which is inhabited by Bedouin, was reportedly encircled and later seized by armed Druze fighters.
The governor of Sweida, Mustapha al-Bakur, called on his constituents to "exercise self-restraint and respond to national calls for reform". The fighting soon spread into other parts of Suweida province, with tribesmen reportedly launching attacks on Druze towns and villages on the city's western and northern outskirts.
Spiritual leaders have also called for calm. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a UK-based monitoring group, said the towns of Sumay and Mazraah were shelled, and that residents of the village of Tayrah fled after armed men entered the outskirts and set fire to several homes.
In April and May clashes between the new security forces and Druze fighters killed dozens of people. It reported that 37 people were killed - 27 Druze, including two children, and 10 Bedouin.
The Druze faith is an off-shoot of Shia Islam, with sizeable communities also in Lebanon, Jordan and Israel. Under the Assad regime, many were quietly loyal to the state in the hope it would offer protection during the 13-year-long civil war. The interior ministry said: "This dangerous escalation comes in light of the absence of relevant official institutions, leading to worsening chaos, a collapse of the security situation, and the local community's inability to contain the crisis despite repeated calls for calm."
Earlier this month, people from the Druze community told the BBC they were not only worried about physical attacks but also not being protected by the new government. It added that interior ministry forces, in co-ordination with the defence ministry, would "begin direct intervention in the area to end the conflict and impose order".
In recent months, hundreds of people have also been killed from the Alawite minority, a branch of Shia Islam, and worshippers inside a church in Damascus have also been attacked. The governor of Suweida, Mustapha al-Bakur, called on his constituents to "exercise self-restraint and respond to national calls for reform".
Western countries have sought to reset relations with Syria. The US took HTS off its list of foreign terrorist organisations this month, while Foreign Secretary David Lammy become the first UK minister to visit Syria since the uprising that led to the country's civil war began 14 years ago. Several Syrian Druze spiritual leaders also appealed for calm.
On Sunday night, local activist-run news outlet Suwayda 24 said that mediation between Bedouin and Druze leaders aimed at de-escalating tensions had resulted in the release of people kidnapped by both sides during the clashes.
However, on Monday morning it reported that fighting had erupted in the western countryside of Suweida after drones attacked villages at the same time as government forces deployed in nearby areas of eastern Deraa province.
At the start of May, more than 130 people were reportedly killed in clashes between Druze gunmen, security forces and allied Sunni Islamist fighters in two suburbs of the capital Damascus and Suweida province.
In the wake of that fighting, the government reached an agreement with Druze militias to hire local security forces in Suweida province from their ranks.