Israel and Syria agree ceasefire
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Syria’s interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa has urged Sunni Bedouin tribes to honor a ceasefire aimed at ending deadly clashes with Druze-linked militias.
Syria’s interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa urged Sunni Muslim Bedouin tribes Saturday to “fully commit” to a ceasefire aimed at ending clashes with militias linked to the Druze minority that left hundreds dead and threatened to unravel the country’s post-war transition.
The conflict drew airstrikes against Syrian forces by neighboring Israel in defense of the Druze minority before most of the fighting was halted by a truce announced Wednesday.
Clashes flared up again Friday between Druze militiamen and Sunni Bedouin tribes around Sweida in southern Syria. Footage from the Al-Arabiya network showed fires burning on the roadside and a heavy presence of Syrian security forces and other armed men.
Syrian government forces had largely pulled out of the Druze-majority southern province of Sweida after days of clashes with militias linked to the Druze religious minority that threatened to unravel the country’s fragile post-war transition.
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Sectarian-tinged clashes left hundreds dead and drew in Israeli military intervention. A U.S. envoy said Israel and Syria had agreed to a truce.
Sharaa has called on the Sunni Bedouin tribes to fully adhere to the ceasefire, aimed at halting deadly confrontations with Druze-affiliated militias that have claimed hundreds of lives and put the country’s fragile post-conflict transition at risk.