Israeli airstrikes target Syrian government troops amid sectarian unrest

BEIRUT - Israel deepened its military involvement in a Syrian civil conflict Tuesday, carrying out a wave of airstrikes against government troops who had deployed to the southern city of Sweida in a bid to contain an outbreak of sectarian violence.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday he had ordered the military to target any Syrian government troops and weaponry that had entered Sweida province. He said the intervention was an effort to secure Israel’s northern border and protect Syria’s Druze minority from the country’s newly formed Islamist-run government.

The Syrian Foreign Ministry condemned the airstrikes in a statement as a “blatant violation” of the country’s sovereignty and said that “a number” of troops and security personnel had been killed, along with several civilians.

The strikes come as the Trump administration, which has recently given Syria an economic lifeline by lifting sanctions, is seeking a non-belligerence agreement between Israel and Syria.

The Israeli strikes, combined with intense clashes in Sweida on Tuesday, came after the government asserted that a ceasefire agreement had been reached in the city.

Syrian government troops began deploying toward Sweida on Monday after clashes erupted between the Druze religious minority and Bedouins, who are Sunni Muslims. The government said it wanted to put a stop to the clashes and restore security to the area. For months, however, Druze leaders have pushed back against the presence of government forces in Sweida and instead have turned to their own militias. Like some other minorities, Druze have expressed fears that the government will not protect them.

As government troops advanced on the southern province, some armed Druze groups battled to stop them from entering. Israel carried out an initial series of strikes on tanks Monday, which it described as a “clear warning” to the Syrian government not to harm the Druze. On Tuesday morning, shortly after the troops entered the city of Sweida for the first time and announced a ceasefire, Netanyahu ordered the heavy airstrikes to begin.

“Israel is committed to preventing harm to the Druze in Syria due to the deep brotherly bond with our Druze citizens in Israel, and their historical and familial ties to the Druze in Syria,” said a joint statement from Netanyahu and Israel Katz, Israel’s defense minister. “We are acting to prevent the Syrian regime from harming them and to ensure the demilitarization of the area adjacent to our border with Syria.”

Israel’s intervention in the unrest poses a further challenge to President Ahmed al-Sharaa, Syria’s rebel leader turned statesman, as he tries to bring the war-fractured country under centralized rule. He is wrestling with mistrust from minorities, bouts of sectarian violence and Israeli challenges to Syrian sovereignty.

Turkey, one of Sharaa’s main supporters, condemned the Israeli intervention and said the Syrian government should be allowed to “establish security across the country,” according to a Foreign Ministry statement.

Netanyahu, who has expressed skepticism of Syria’s rulers since they took power in December, has taken steps to keep the Syrian forces away from Israeli borders. He has imposed a ban on Syrian troops operating south of the capital, Damascus, and launched hundreds of airstrikes across Syria. He has also styled Israel as a protector of the Druze in Syria.

Early on Tuesday, as troops and forces from the Ministry of Interior advanced on the city of Sweida, Druze spiritual leaders called on the armed groups involved in the clashes to ceasefire, allow government forces into the city and hand over their weapons to the ministry. These leaders also called for “opening a dialogue with the Syrian government to address the repercussions of the events.”

But shortly after a ceasefire was announced, Hikmat al-Hijri, an influential Druze spiritual leader who opposes the government, said the statement had been imposed on them by Damascus - and that government troops had already broken the agreement.

“Despite our acceptance of this humiliating statement for the safety of our people and children, they broke the promise and continued the indiscriminate shelling of unarmed civilians,” he said, as he called on his supporters to ignore the ceasefire and continue the fight.

Activist-run local news outlet Sweida 24 reported that clashes continued in several areas of the city into Tuesday evening. Three Druze residents of the city, who spoke on the condition of anonymity out of fear for their safety, said that attackers entering the city were looting houses and had burned village homes in the countryside. Yarub, a 26-year-old resident on the outskirts of the city, said he could see drones buzzing around the sky and could hear shelling and bombing as he sheltered inside with his family.

Residents of Sweida accused Damascus of using the local clashes as a pretext to enter an area where the government has struggled to consolidate control.

Youssef al-Jarbou, a Druze cleric who negotiated with the government authorities, said Tuesday evening that the government had not honored the ceasefire agreement.

“All of their promises were void, and nothing was implemented in reality,” he said in a phone interview. “We have reached the point that all of us are going to carry arms and stop them because it is not tolerated anymore.”