Syria struggles to enforce ceasefire amid clashes
Reuters reporters heard gunfire from inside the city of Sweida and saw shells land in nearby villages on Saturday. There were no immediate, confirmed reports of casualties.
The government had said security forces were deploying in the southern region to try to keep peace, and urged all parties to stop fighting after nearly a week of factional bloodshed in which hundreds have been killed.
Late on Saturday, the interior ministry said clashes in Sweida city had been halted and the area cleared of Bedouin tribal fighters following the deployment.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a British-based monitoring group, said clashes since last week around Sweida had killed at least 940 people. Reuters could not independently verify the toll.
Interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa said "Arab and American" mediation had helped restore calm, before the clashes escalated. He criticised Israel for airstrikes during the week.
VIOLENCE IN DRUZE REGION CHALLENGES DAMASCUS
The fighting is the latest challenge to the control of Sharaa's Islamist-dominated government, which took over after rebels toppled autocratic president Bashar al-Assad in December.
It started last week as clashes between the Druze - a religious minority native to southern Syria, the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and parts of Lebanon and Jordan - and Syrian Bedouin tribes.
Government forces then arrived to try to quell tensions, clashing with Druze gunmen and attacking the Druze community.
Saturday's violence once again pitted Druze against Bedouin, witnesses said.
The fighting has drawn in neighbouring Israel, which carried out airstrikes in southern Syria and on the defence ministry in Damascus this week while government forces were fighting with the Druze. Israel says it is protecting the Druze, who also form a significant minority in Israel.
But Israel and Washington differ over Syria. The United States supports a centralised Syria under Sharaa's government, which has pledged to rule for all citizens, while Israel says the government is dominated by jihadists and a danger to minorities.
In March, Syria's military was involved in mass killings of members of the Alawite minority, to which much of Assad's elite belonged.
ISRAEL-SYRIA TENSIONS
In a statement on Saturday, the Syrian presidency announced an immediate ceasefire and urged an immediate end to hostilities. Sharaa said Syria would not be a "testing ground for partition, secession, or sectarian incitement".
"The Israeli intervention pushed the country into a dangerous phase that threatened its stability," he said in a televised speech.
Sharaa appeared to blame Druze gunmen for the latest clashes, accusing them of revenge attacks against Bedouins.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said Sharaa was siding with the perpetrators.
"In al-Shara's Syria, it is very dangerous to be a member of a minority - Kurd, Druze, Alawite, or Christian," he posted on X.
US envoy Tom Barrack announced on Friday that Syria and Israel had agreed to a ceasefire.
Barrack, who is US ambassador to Turkey and Washington's Syria envoy, urged Druze, Bedouins and Sunnis, together with other minorities, to "build a new and united Syrian identity".
Israel has attacked Syrian military facilities in the seven months since Assad fell, and says it wants areas of southern Syria near its border to remain demilitarised.
On Friday, an Israeli official said Israel had agreed to allow Syrian forces limited access to Sweida for two days.
SWEIDA HOSPITAL FILLS WITH CASUALTIES
Mansour Namour, a resident of a village near Sweida city, said mortar shells were still landing near his home on Saturday afternoon, and that at least 22 people had been wounded.
A doctor in Sweida said a local hospital was full of bodies and wounded people from days of violence.
"All the injuries are from bombs, some people with their chests wounded. There are also injuries to limbs from shrapnel," said Omar Obeid, director of the hospital.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RNZ News
2 hours ago
- RNZ News
Trump says he will help Afghans stuck in the UAE
By Doina Chiacu , Reuters US President Donald Trump. Photo: Getty Images/CNN Newsource US President Donald Trump has said he would help Afghans detained in the United Arab Emirates for years after fleeing their country when the United States pulled out and the Taliban took power. Trump, a Republican who promised a far-reaching immigration crackdown, suspended refugee resettlement after he took office in January. In April, the Trump administration terminated temporary deportation protections for thousands of Afghans in the US. "I will try to save them, starting right now," Trump said in a post on Truth Social that linked to an article on the Afghans held in limbo there. Trump cited news website "Just the News" as saying that UAE officials were preparing to hand over some Afghan refugees to the Taliban. Reuters has not confirmed the report. The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The UAE, a close security partner of the United States, agreed in 2021 to temporarily house several thousand Afghans evacuated from Kabul as the Taliban ousted the US-backed government during the final stages of the US-led withdrawal. Nearly 200,000 Afghans were brought to the US by former President Joe Biden's administration since the chaotic US troop withdrawal from Kabul. Canada agreed in 2022 to resettle about 1000 of the Afghans still held in the UAE after a US request. It is unclear how many remain in the Gulf country. Some countries have forced Afghan refugees to return to Afghanistan. Nearly 2 million Afghans were returned from Iran and Pakistan in the past seven months, the United Nations said last week. Germany on Friday deported 81 Afghan men to Afghanistan amid a tightening of refugee admissions. Some other European countries are pushing to tighten asylum rules in the bloc. In the United States, Democrats have urged Trump to restore temporary protected status for Afghans, saying women and children could face particular harm under the Taliban-led government in place since 2021. Refugees include family members of Afghan-American US military personnel, children cleared to reunite with their parents, relatives of Afghans already admitted and tens of thousands of Afghans who worked for the US government during the 20-year war. Shawn VanDiver, president of the #AfghanEvac advocacy group, urged Trump to follow up on his post with action. "President Trump has the authority to do the right thing. He should instruct DHS (Department of Homeland Security) and the Department of State to expedite processing, push for third-country partnerships, and ensure that we never again leave our wartime allies behind," he said in a statement. -Reuters
NZ Herald
3 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Analysis: Several smaller countries are taking a stand about Israel's conduct in Gaza
That includes a bombing campaign last week in Syria, which Israel says is aimed at defending minority Druze from sectarian attacks but analysts also believe is part of a deeper strategy to maintain influence over the country's fragile post-dictatorship transition. Away from the warzones of the Middle East, Israel finds itself fighting other battles. Judges at the International Criminal Court in The Hague rejected Israel's request to withdraw arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant. They are both wanted for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity carried out under their watch in the aftermath of Hamas' October 7, 2023, strike on southern Israel. In a bid to pressure the international court, the United States has placed sanctions on some ICC judges and prosecutors. Last week, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar went to Brussels for meetings with European counterparts. He emerged, in his words, victorious, having achieved 'an important diplomatic feat' of persuading the European Union to avoid adopting punitive measures against Israel. Kaja Kallas, the European Union's top diplomat, said the bloc was keeping 'options on the table' but would not pursue mooted sanctions that it was considering after an earlier EU assessment found Israel possibly in breach of human rights commitments. But rights advocates were frustrated, given the scale of the humanitarian disaster in Gaza and Israel's documented stifling of aid into the flattened territory. The EU's acquiescence, suggested Amnesty International's Agnès Callamard, would be 'remembered as one of the most disgraceful moments in the EU's history' and was 'a cruel and unlawful betrayal of the European project and vision'. The governments of Ireland, Spain, and Slovenia are the three European nations that have been outspoken in their criticism of Israel and spearheaded the attempted reckoning in Brussels. They are pressing ahead with their own measures to show their disapproval of Israel's conduct of the war, which has severely depleted Hamas but also destroyed Gaza and killed tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians, including many children. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez earlier this month accused Israel of carrying out a 'genocide'. Irish lawmakers are advancing legislation banning trade with Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, much to the anger of some US officials. And Slovenia declared two far-right Israeli Cabinet ministers as personae non gratae, banning them from the country. 'This kind of measure is the first of its kind in the EU,' Slovenian Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon said. 'We are breaking new ground.' There's reason to be cynical about the efficacy of such attempts by small countries. In Europe, the governments of Britain, France, and Germany remain far more reluctant to confront Israel in similar fashion, while French President Emmanuel Macron's efforts to revive international momentum toward the creation of a Palestinian state seem to be fizzling out. Israel's boosters in the US can shrug and smirk. 'An unstated reason for Europe's particular animus toward Israel over the decades is that the continent's leaders secretly resent Israel's willingness and ability to regularly defend itself through tough military action,' mused veteran Washington wonk Robert D. Kaplan, 'something Europe's elites never had even to countenance, and arguably couldn't manage.' Kaplan and his ilk were unlikely to be impressed by a summit that took place last week in Bogotá, where delegations from 30 countries convened to pressure Israel to end its war in Gaza, as well as its occupation of the West Bank. The session of The Hague Group was co-hosted by South Africa, which is leading a genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice, and the left-wing government of Colombia. It concluded last Thursday with 12 countries agreeing to implement a set of measures to 'restrain' Israel. These include a denial of arms to Israel, banning of ships transporting such arms and reviews of public contracts with companies linked to Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories. A scan of the list of the countries that immediately signed on may suggest Israel's leadership isn't quite shaking in its boots: Bolivia, Colombia, Cuba, Indonesia, Iraq, Libya, Malaysia, Namibia, Nicaragua, Oman, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and South Africa. But the conference's backers argued that it's a first step in a global shift. 'For too long, governments have been too afraid of the consequences of angering the US to risk taking action to uphold international law,' Annelle Sheline, a former State Department official who attended the proceedings in the Colombian capital, told me. 'This is about more than Israel and Palestine, this is about a new multilateralism taking shape to replace the old system.'
NZ Herald
3 hours ago
- NZ Herald
James of thrones: A new book on the monarch who created modern Britain
'The wisest fool in Christendom': King James I. Photo / Getty Images Compelling, meticulous account of the life and aspirations of the monarch who created modern Britain. What do you know of James I? Your answer might include 'gunpowder plot', 'Bible', 'witches', and maybe, 'Was he the gay one?' But do you then draw a blank? Here's a highly readable, meticulously researched book to fill those gaps and give you a broad understanding of this fascinating period of history, when the world order was undergoing profound changes that would ripple down through the centuries. The events of James I's reign took place 400 years ago, but we're still dealing with their consequences today. British historian Anna Whitelock says The Sun Rising isn't a biography. 'Rather it is a reframing, a 'provocation' which seeks to move beyond traditional accounts, to place James in a global context, as a 'politician' who … laid the foundations for the future development of Britain; its identity, ambition and place in the world.' The result is a fascinating insight into Britain and beyond at the start of the 17th century. It includes riproaring tales of adventure – sometimes tragic, often comic, always gripping – and is brought to life with contemporary quotes that give a real flavour of the times. James I was 36 when he ascended to England's throne in 1603. He'd already been King James VI of Scotland since the age of one. He was the first monarch of the Stuart dynasty and the first king of both England and Scotland, and was committed to uniting those two kingdoms. During his reign, modern Britain was born, with the creation of a common currency and a British flag – now called the Union Jack. For the first time, ambassadors were appointed to represent 'the King of Great Britain'. The European powers – Britain, Spain, Portugal, France and the Netherlands – were jostling for position, particularly when it came to trade. It's a brave author who discusses the origins of colonialism, but Whitelock does this brilliantly, plunging us into the mindset of the times, never excusing, only laying out the facts, the context and the history. Part one discusses James's ascension to the throne. When Elizabeth I died, this most stubborn of queens had failed to name her successor and people were nervous. Civil war was a distinct possibility and the English worried that European countries would use the excuse of a contested succession to invade. But James – and here we see the canny Scot – had spent years secretly planning for this, cultivating alliances with both Catholic and Protestant courts in Europe, as well as significant players in England. Of note is his secret correspondence with Elizabeth's closest adviser, Robert Cecil. This was dangerous for Cecil – Elizabeth liked to know everything. We learn that James's code name for Cecil was '10', while Cecil referred to James as '30'. When Elizabeth died, James proceeded to London with great ceremony. 'It was to be a truly unprecedented progress: a king of Scotland travelling south … to peacefully claim the crown of England after centuries of acrimonious rivalry and warfare between the two nations.' Nevertheless, we learn that more than 4000 soldiers were deployed across London and that eight ships were moored on the Thames in case of foreign invasion. The English were mostly happy with James as successor, not least because he already had two male heirs (he'd been married to Anne of Denmark for 13 years). Plus, he was a direct descendent of Henry VII, his grandmother being Henry's eldest daughter. James's greatest desire was for peace in Christendom and he worked hard to towards this end. He didn't achieve it but left as his legacy the King James Bible, first published in 1611: 'James hoped the new translation would unify his kingdom and build a national identity in which he, the Bible and the church stood together. A single Bible translation equalled a unified church, and a unified church was the first step to a unified country.' In part two we head overseas. Britain desperately needed to secure trade routes, because at the end of Elizabeth's reign, England was broke. 'My hairs stand upright to think of it,' Cecil wrote in 1601. This is the meatiest part of the book with tales of early settlers in Virginia, and trade wars and bumbling fiascos in the East. The author tells a great tale, and the descriptions of those voyages of exploration, those meetings with sultans and shoguns and shahs, have the flavour of historical fiction, except they're true. Anna Whitelock: A fascinating account of early 17th-century life. Photos / Supplied In part three we're back to Protestants vs Catholics, and we learn of the lengths to which James went to secure peace in Europe. He attempted to keep the Catholics on side by marrying his eldest son to the Spanish infanta (it didn't happen), while also supporting his powerful Protestant son-in-law Frederick, the Elector Palatine of the Rhine. It was an impossible task and James died without achieving his dream, as Europe became embroiled in the Thirty Years War. James I was described by a contemporary as 'the wisest fool in Christendom'. Whitelock writes, 'James could be pragmatic, shrewd and adept. A highly educated man with extensive views on issues ranging from theology and political philosophy to witchcraft, from tobacco use to silkworm-farming, he showed guile during his reign, balancing principle with pragmatism …' I was impressed, particularly with his focus on peace. However, we also see the beginnings of the struggle between parliament and the monarchy that would lead to the English Civil War. There are portraits, illustrations, and maps of 17th-century London, Asia and the Americas – a great addition to what is already a highly readable account of James and the dawn of a global Britain. The Sun Rising: James I and the Dawn of a Global Britain by Anna Whitelock (Bloomsbury, $44.99) is out on July 29.
