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Israel strikes Sweida city in Syria amid tribal clashes, first raid after Al-Sharaa's forces withdrawal
A member of Syrian security forces looks at burnt vehicles amid ongoing clashes in the southern city of Sweida on July 16, 2025. Syrian regime of Ahmed al-Sharaa deployed troops in the predominantly Druze province of Sweida after clashes between Druze fighters and Bedouin tribes killed scores of people. (Photo: Bakr ALkasem/ AFP)
As the tensions in West Asia continue to escalate, reports are emerging that the Israeli military has carried out airstrikes on the outskirts of Sweida city. The strikes occurred on Thursday night as clashes between tribal fighters and Bedouin fighters intensified.
The clashes soon started a wave of tit-for-tat retaliatory violence earlier in the day after Syrian government forces withdrew from Sweida. The violence commenced immediately after the Syrian government forces started to withdraw from the Druze-majority province of Sweida, ending four days of conflict between the army and local Druze fighters.
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In a speech on Thursday, Syria's interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa said that the Druze groups would be left to govern security affairs in the southern province, in what he described as a choice to avoid war. 'We sought to avoid dragging the country into a new, broader war that could derail it from its path to recovery from the devastating war … We chose the interests of Syrians over chaos and destruction," the Syrian president averred.
Israeli military intervenes in the Sweida clashes
Soon after Al-Sharaa's statement, clashes resumed in the Syrian city with multiple reports suggesting that Druze groups launched revenge attacks on Bedouin villages, killing many civilians and prompting a wave of displacement. It is pertinent to note that the Bedouin tribes had fought alongside government forces against Druze fighters earlier in the week.
Syrian security forces initially intervened in the city's affairs on Monday after a local dispute between Arab Bedouin tribes and Druze fighters escalated into fighting. Druze militias tried to prevent the entry of the Syrian army and attacked them, which led to days of clashes with government forces.
Meanwhile, Syrian state media reported that Israel conducted strikes near the city of Sweida on Thursday. This marked the first Israeli raids in the city after the Syrian government forces withdrew from the region. 'Israeli occupation aircraft carried out a raid on the outskirts of Sweida city,' said Syria's state-run SANA.
The strike came a day after Israel launched rare strikes deep into Damascus, targeting the country's military headquarters and a site near the presidential palace. Israeli officials argued that the strikes were conducted to protect Syria's Druze minority amid escalating tensions across the country.
Amid the chaos, the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported over 300 deaths in Sweida province since Sunday, including 27 Druze civilians allegedly executed by Syrian forces.
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