Israel-Syria agree to ceasefire amid Druze-Bedouin clashes, says US. Why did Tel Aviv bomb Damascus?

Mint

19-07-2025

Israel and Syria have reached a ceasefire agreement, the US envoy to Turkey Tom Barrack, said on Friday, following days of intense fighting in the Druze region that left more than 300 people dead.
The violence escalated when Israel launched airstrikes on the Syrian capital Damascus, and targeted Syrian regime forces in the south, insisting on their withdrawal. Israel stated its actions were aimed at protecting the Druze community, a small but influential minority with populations in Syria, Lebanon, and Israel.
Despite the ceasefire announcement, clashes were reportedly still ongoing in northern and western parts of Sweida province, according to residents and Ryan Marouf, head of the independent news outlet Sweida24.
An estimated 700,000 Druze are living in Syria, and about 150,000 in Israel. In Israel, many Druze have historically felt a strong sense of allegiance to the state, viewing themselves as part of a 'blood covenant' with their Jewish neighbours dating back to 1948, the year of Israel's founding, which also saw the mass displacement of Palestinians in the Nakba.
Although some Druze now feel like 'second-class' citizens, the majority continue to support the state and participate in military service.
Despite recent claims of protecting the Druze in Suwayda, Israel has a longstanding pattern of military aggression against Syria. Well before the latest violence, and even after the removal of Bashar al-Assad following a 14-year civil war, Israel has conducted hundreds of airstrikes.
Currently, it occupies roughly 400 square kilometres (155 square miles) of Syrian territory, excluding the western Golan Heights, which it has held since 1967.
'It's pure opportunism,' said Alon Pinkas, a former Israeli ambassador and consul general in New York, in an interview with Al Jazeera.
Pinkas dismissed Israel's stated intentions as insincere, adding, 'Of course, it's nice to pretend that we're helping our friends the Druze, in the same way as we never helped our other friends, the Kurds.'
As reported by Al Jazeera, Pinkas pointed to several motives behind the latest strikes, ranging from Prime Minister Netanyahu's attempt to bear a wartime leader image and delay his corruption trial, to maintaining the 'delusion' that Israel has successfully transformed the region through military action over the last 21 months.
'Lastly, he doesn't want to see a unified Syria with a strong central government controlled by al-Sharaa,' Pinkas said. 'He wants a weak central government dealing with areas controlled by the Kurds (in the north) and the Druze and Bedouin in the south.'
'Basically, if Syria remains un-unified, Israel can do what it wants in its south,' he added, as reported by Al Jazeera.
Earlier, in a post on X, Netanyahu wrote, 'My brothers, Druze citizens of Israel, the situation in Suwayda, the situation in southwestern Syria, is very serious. The IDF is operating, the Air Force is operating, other forces are operating. We are working to save our Druze brothers and to eliminate the regime's gangs. '
'And now I have one request of you: You are citizens of Israel. Do not cross the border. You are putting your lives at risk; you could be killed, you could be kidnapped, and you are hindering the IDF's efforts. Therefore, I ask you—return to your homes, let the IDF operate,' he added.
The Druze religious sect, now caught in a surge of retaliatory violence in Syria, originated around 1,000 years ago as a breakaway movement from Ismailism, itself a branch of Shiite Islam. Syria's Druze have a longstanding tradition of navigating their course for survival amid the country's shifting centers of power.
Historically, they played a significant role in uprisings against both Ottoman and French colonial rulers in the fight to shape a modern Syrian state.
During his rule, Bashar al-Assad begrudgingly granted the Druze a measure of autonomy, as they sought to stay off the front lines of Syria's conflicts. Druze men were exempted from mandatory military service and instead formed local defence units composed of farmers and labourers to safeguard their own regions.
However, the fall of Syrian autocrat Bashar al-Assad in December was largely welcomed by the Druze community. However, opinions quickly split over the leadership of interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa, leaving the group politically divided.
We are working to save our Druze brothers and to eliminate the regime's gangs.
The recent wave of violence has deepened scepticism among the Druze toward Syria's new leadership and eroded hopes for peaceful coexistence.
(With inputs from agencies)