Spillover of Syrian violence to Lebanon adds 'new layer of worry'
'The last thing we need now is more tension between different groups,' said a security source in Beirut.
Hundreds were killed in days of fighting between Druze fighters and government forces and allied groups in Sweida. The southern Syrian city is a predominantly Druze city. The violence escalated significantly on Wednesday when Israel carried out strikes on Damascus, while also pressing attacks on Syrian government forces in the south.
'The violence in Syria is spreading to Lebanon. We are seeing heightened tensions between Sunnis and Druze,' the source added.
The Druze are a small religious sect that emerged from a branch of Islam in the 11th century. Their faith blends elements of Islam with ancient traditions. About one million Druze live across the Middle East, mainly in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Israel.
Lebanese security sources warned that Druze communities in some villages are expelling Syrian workers, while others have been attacking cars belonging to Syrians passing through.
Meanwhile, several demonstrations in support of Hayat Tahrir Al Sham (HTS), the Islamist group that Syrian President Ahmad Al Shara led, took place in northern Lebanon, accompanied by warnings that extremist groups are preparing for 'action,' according to the sources who did not further elaborate.
Lebanon is already in a fragile state, with concerns existing over possible clashes between Hezbollah-aligned Shiites and Sunni factions linked to extremist groups.
In addition to concerns of sectarian fighting, Israel has continued striking Hezbollah targets in Lebanon on a daily basis, despite a truce agreement reached in November.
'This Druze-Sunni tension adds a new layer of worry. We are dealing with intercommunal strife, Syrian-related unrest, a continuing conflict with Israel, and the threat of terrorist attacks. It's just too much at this point,' said another security source.
The Lebanese army announced last month the arrest of the suspected leader of ISIS in Lebanon, accusing him of planning attacks.
Authorities fear that dormant ISIS and other extremist cells in Lebanon could now be activated in retaliation or as part of a wider plan to destabilise the country amid renewed instability in neighbouring Syria.
Although largely driven underground after a major military defeat in 2017, ISIS and other extremist groups have fought bloody battles with the Lebanese army in the past and carried out bombings against Hezbollah and its supporters.
Now, with Syria's political landscape shifting after the collapse of the Assad regime last year, Lebanese officials warn that the threat is far from over.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Zawya
28 minutes ago
- Zawya
Saudi Arabia announces $6.4bln in Syria investments
Saudi Arabia announced $6.4 billion of investments in Syria on Thursday, reflecting the kingdom's deepening ties with interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa's government as it seeks to rebuild Syria after a 14-year civil war. The deals, unveiled by Saudi Investment Minister Khalid Al-Falih at a Damascus forum, are a major financial boost for Sharaa. Al-Falih said his visit to Syria had been ordered by Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince and de-facto ruler Mohammed bin Salman, calling the trip "confirmation of the kingdom's firm and supportive stance towards sisterly Syria". The investment deals included $2.93 billion for real estate and infrastructure projects and about $1.07 billion for the telecommunications and information technology sector, Al-Falih said. Businesses involved in the plans include telecommunications firms the Saudi Telecom Company (STC) and GO Telecom, digital security company Elm, cybersecurity firm Cipher, and Classera, an education technology company. Al-Falih said 47 agreements would be signed over the course of the conference, with more than 100 companies participating. Al-Falih also announced the establishment of a Saudi-Syrian Business Council at the event, which had been scheduled for June but was delayed due to the conflict between Iran and Israel. Riyadh has been a key ally of Sharaa's government, which came to power after longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad was toppled in December, using its diplomatic influence to persuade U.S. President Donald Trump to lift sanctions. Companies, many from Gulf states and Turkey, have expressed interest in rebuilding Syria's power generation capacity, roads, ports and other damaged infrastructure. Syria has signed a $7-billion power deal with Qatar and an $800-million agreement with UAE-based port company DP World in recent months. U.S. energy firms are also set to draw up a master plan for the country's energy sector. In April, Saudi Arabia and Qatar announced they would pay off Syria's World Bank arrears, opening up the possibility of new lending. ($1 = 3.7514 riyals) (Reporting by Ahmed Elimam and Tala Ramadan; Writing by Pesha Magid; Editing by Bernadette Baum, Tom Perry and Helen Popper)
The National
41 minutes ago
- The National
Sweida stand-off eases as Syria set for talks with Israel
Hundreds of pro-government fighters have withdrawn from a front line near Sweida in southern Syria, sources in Jordan said on Thursday. The retreat of about 500 gunmen comes before a US -supervised meeting between Syrian and Israeli officials to contain the conflict, which has affected regional stability. The withdrawal of fighters stationed at the rear of the front line has lessened the thrust of an offensive on the north-western approaches to Sweida city, the provincial capital, the sources said. Sweida's Druze defenders have resisted waves of attacks since June 10 but hundreds of members of the sect have been killed. Israeli raids to defend Syria 's Druze, and US diplomatic pressure on Damascus, have contributed to curbing the government attacks. Israeli and Syrian officials will meet in the Azerbaijani capital of Baku on Thursday to discuss containing the hostilities. Axios first reported that Tom Barrack, the US envoy to Syria and Turkey, had arranged the meeting. However, officials from Turkey, the most powerful backer of the post- Bashar Al Assad government in Syria, will also be present in Baku, along with US officials, two diplomats said. In the past 24 hours, an auxiliary force comprised mainly of militiamen from the mostly Sunni governorate of Deraa, a launch pad of attacks on Sweida, has dispersed to other areas in Deraa, the sources said. 'Israeli drones have been hovering over their heads, and they risked being wiped out had they tried to advance,' said one of the sources, who has been monitoring the conflict from Jordan's border with Sweida. The force was part of a loose 1,000-man formation led by army and intelligence officers who have been using drones and Grad rockets to attack rural Druze areas next to the city of Shahba, near Sweida city. Israel conducted an aerial campaign last week that killed hundreds of Syrian military personnel, curbing a government offensive on Sweida. The city's Druze leadership has largely opposed attempts by Damascus to send security forces to take control of the area. The central government is dominated by Hayat Tahrir Al Sham, a splinter group of Al Qaeda that ousted the former regime in December.
The National
2 hours ago
- The National
Syrian diaspora hopes AI can help rebuild country's tech future
Syrians abroad are hoping the momentum of their transition to democracy could create a tech hub in their country devastated by more than a decade of war. Syria lacks some of the basic infrastructure required for technological companies to thrive, such as good quality internet, data centres and access to the cloud. But experts believe Syrians could skip some of the hurdles that countries previously faced when building their technology sectors, thanks to the recent rapid evolution of AI, which could do most of the legwork. We're trying to focus on upskilling first Ranim Alwair 'We are capable more than any time before. Now, all the AI technology will just enable more productivity,' said London-based AI scientist Rami Al Batal, speaking at a tech event for Syrians organised by Sync in London. Some are hopeful the country could build a tech hub similar to those that emerged from Rwanda after the genocide, and Estonia after the collapse of the Soviet Union, according to the computer scientist Rafa'at Zarka. 'The common thread in both (Estonia and Rwanda) was a clear digital vision,' Mr Zarka, a Syrian working in London for Microsoft, told The National. Rwanda's capital Kigale is now home to the African continent's leading start-ups, and Estonia has a track record of building tech unicorns including Skype in 2005, the taxi service provider Bolt, and payment platform Wise. 'They had limited resources, but they could go far with smart digital investment and cloud partnerships, with smart regulations to make it easier for public-private collaboration.' Though US, UK and EU sanctions were removed earlier this year, hesitation around investing in the country remains. US President Donald Trump's order to ease sanctions still needs to come into effect. Until then, Syrians will be unable to access the cloud, and western financial services continue to be hesitant about transacting in Syria. The Syrian Ministry of Information is believed to have contacted cloud providers to request access until then. 'Now sanctions are lifted we should put more pressure to get access to cloud infrastructure,' Dr Al Batal said. 'We need to ask foreign governments about how to extend venture capital zones to cover Syria. I know it is still higher risk, but it's now up to us to provide the stability and to prove how productive we are.' Nour Al Khatib, a Dubai-based telecoms leader at MTN, said international support for Syria was crucial in bringing the country out of its isolation and rebuilding trust. 'We have a historical moment, to collaborate with the UK government, as well as the people, in order to support Syrians in the journey of rebuilding the country, and having our Syria back and online again,' she told The National. Ms Al Khatib is a board member of Sync, a Silicon Valley based platform for Syrians in tech, which organised the London event. 'Syria was offline for 54 years. Now Syria is back online, just give Syria and Syrians a hand in order to operate the way that it should be operating,' she said. Syria can also rely on the experience of tech professionals from its diaspora. Among them is Nour Shaker, the British-Syrian founder of SpatialX, an AI-powered cancer diagnostics application. In Silicon Valley's Palo Alto, Bassel Ojjeh – a founder of Sync – is the CEO telecoms software product LigaData. London-based architect Ranim Alwair has been advising Syrian ministries under the new administration on how to integrate AI into their daily work. She is working on a pilot project to train local government workers in Damascus in AI, and recently gave workshops to the Ministry of Transport. 'We're trying to focus on upskilling first in the short term, then automation. Syria is really falling decades behind,' she said. 'We're trying to get officials exposed to the knowledge of AI so that they get to know how useful it is to use AI to automate tedious tasks, and how much time and money it will save,' she said. She has urged government officials to bring overseas consultants to get advice on their digital infrastructure, and to teach more people English so that they can access technology products more easily. 'One official told me that employees really need upskilling from the basics, using a laptop, sending an email as well, how to use internet safely, and so on so forth. So we're trying to put programmes at the moment to start from these stages,' she said. Alwair fled Homs in 2012 with husband, mother and two small children after her father was killed during a siege of the city by the Syrian army. 'We lost everything,' she said, recalling how they left in haste with a small suitcase. After coming to the UK, she applied to study architecture at University College London. She never imagined at that time that she would one day be playing a role in building Syria's future government and institutions. 'I feel really happy and excited that I am delivering whatever I learnt in the UK, in Arabic to home country. Up until now it feels like a dream,' she said. Members of the Syrian community in London say they are able to work together for the first time in over a decade. Laila Chamsi-Bacha, an event planner and founder of Khayo, a start-up specialising in promoting Middle Eastern food, said that the community had become divided after 2011 – with few people trusting each other. 'It's really exciting after all these years to be able to come together as Syrians. The Syrian community felt like it was more and more fragmented. But now the walls aren't listening any more,' she said.
