This is Beirut

Teymour Joumblatt Condemns Violence in Sweida, Calls for National Dialogue

This is Beirut, 29/08 19:00 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

taymour jumblatt PSP Sweida Druze Israel Syria

Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) leader and Lebanese MP Teymour Joumblatt spoke out on Friday with deep sorrow and frustration over the recent violence in Sweida, Syria. He called for peace and unity in the wake of the tragedy. “We are going through a very sensitive time, filled with sadness and anger over what has happened in Sweida,” ...

Sectarian Violence in Syria's Druze Heartland Killed Nearly 2,000

This is Beirut, 29/08 13:35 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Israel Syria Sweida Druze Bedouin

A Syria monitor said Friday that the death toll from sectarian violence in Sweida province in July has climbed to nearly 2,000, after dozens more bodies were identified. The week of bloodshed erupted on July 13 with clashes between Druze fighters and Sunni Bedouin, but rapidly escalated, drawing in government forces and fighters from other parts ...

Syrian Religious Leader Demands 'Separate' Region for Druze

This is Beirut, 25/08 18:45 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Syria Druze Hikmat al-Hijri Sweida

A prominent Druze leader in southern Syria demanded on Monday the creation of a separate region for his minority community, as he seeks to unite local armed factions following sectarian violence last month. The week of bloodshed in Sweida province began on July 13 with clashes between Druze fighters and Sunni Bedouin but rapidly escalated, ...

UN Experts Denounce Attacks on Syria's Druze

This is Beirut, 21/08 16:25 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Israel United Nations Druze Syria Sweida

A panel of UN experts denounced Thursday what they described as an outbreak of massacres, sexual violence and kidnappings targeting the Druze minority in southern Syria in the past month. Fighting erupted in the Sweida region on July 13. Clashes between local Druze fighters and Sunni Bedouin rapidly escalated, drawing in government forces and ...

Syrian, Israeli Diplomats Met in Paris to Discuss De-Escalation: Syrian State Media

This is Beirut, 20/08 10:45 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Damascus Israel USA Paris Israel Sweida

Syria's foreign minister met with an Israeli delegation in Paris to discuss de-escalation and the situation in Druze-majority Sweida province after deadly sectarian violence last month, state media reported Wednesday. State news agency SANA said late Tuesday that Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani and Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister ...

PSP Calls for International Probe into Sweida's Violence

This is Beirut, 15/08 17:40 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Syria Sweida Aid Druze PSP Walid Jumblatt

The Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) called on Friday for an international investigation into the recent violence in Sweida, the Druze heartland of southern Syria, where hundreds were killed. Rejecting what it described as “rumors and claims” about its stance, the PSP reiterated its demands for justice, urgent relief for the embattled city ...

Renewed Sectarian Clashes in South Syria Kill Four

This is Beirut, 03/08 17:41 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Syria Sweida SOHR

Renewed sectarian clashes in southern Syria's Druze-majority Sweida province killed at least four people on Sunday, a war monitor said, in the first deadly incident since a ceasefire last month. The province witnessed deadly clashes between Druze fighters and Sunni Bedouins in July that drew the intervention of government forces and tribal ...

Syria Forms Committee to Investigate Violence in Druze Heartland

This is Beirut, 31/07 22:15 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Israel Sweida Syria Druze Commmittee

Syria's justice ministry announced on Thursday the formation of a committee to investigate deadly violence in the southern Druze-majority province of Sweida. The week-long clashes which began on July 13 killed more than 1,400 people, many of them Druze civilians, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor. In a decree issued ...

From Sweida to Hasbaya: The Druze Soul Under Strain

Katia Kahil, 31/07 13:00 - Reading : 6 minute(s)

druze Sweida Lebanon Syria

While Syria’s Sweida province remains on edge following July’s deadly clashes, the reverberations are deeply felt across the border in Hasbaya. In this part of southern Lebanon—as elsewhere in the Druze world—identity transcends borders. The people of Hasbaya have lived this tragedy as their own, with Druze Sheikh al-Aql, Sami Abi ...

Syria Says Meeting with Israeli Officials Sought to 'Contain Escalation'

This is Beirut, 26/07 18:40 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Syria Israel Sweida

A Syrian diplomatic source said Saturday that a US-mediated meeting with Israeli officials in Paris this week sought to "contain the escalation" after recent sectarian violence in southern Syria prompted Israeli intervention. Israel launched strikes this month on Damascus and the Druze-majority Sweida province, saying it was acting both ...

Sami Abi el-Mona Calls for Urgent Humanitarian Mobilization in Sweida

This is Beirut, 24/07 13:00 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Sweida Druze Syria Sami Abi al-Mona

Druze spiritual leader Sheikh Sami Abi al-Mona called on Thursday for urgent humanitarian action to support the people of Sweida, who have been deeply affected by recent violent clashes. Speaking at a press conference on Thursday, Abi al-Mona described a dire situation in the Syrian governorate, pointing to significant civilian casualties and ...

Israel in Sweida: Motives and Ambitions

Philippe Abi Akl, 22/07 08:00 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Israel Benjamin Netanyahu Syria Sweida Bedouin Ahmad al-Sharaa Druze

As heavy clashes enter their second week in Syria’s southern province of Sweida, pitting Druze factions against tribal groups backed by the Syrian Army and security forces, Israel’s quiet but deliberate involvement is raising alarm. Official claims of protecting Syria’s Druze are met with widespread skepticism. The real story lies in Tel ...

Sweida