Syrian government announces end to clashes in Sweida after week of deadly fighting

The Syrian government announced today, Sunday, that fighting in the city of Sweida has ceased, following a week of fierce inter-communal clashes that, according to independent estimates, claimed the lives of nearly 1,000 people.

As stated by a Syrian Interior Ministry spokesperson in a Telegram post, “Sweida has been evacuated of fighters from all tribes, and fighting in the city’s neighborhoods has stopped.” According to the same source, the process of redeploying government forces in the area has begun, aiming to restore order and security.

Sweida, a city with a Druze majority, has recently become a battlefield for bloody clashes between local militias and government units, as well as between rival communities, amidst the broader destabilization in southern Syria.

High Death Toll and Ongoing Efforts to Restore Control
Although there is no official toll from Damascus, independent organizations and local networks report nearly 1,000 dead and hundreds injured, including civilians. The fighting involved the use of heavy weapons, snipers, and air strikes in densely populated neighborhoods.

The Druze of the region reportedly took full control of the city over the weekend, with government forces withdrawing from key positions, while the Syrian regime attempts to bring the situation back under control through diplomatic and military means.

Calm appeared to have returned to southern Syria's Sweida province on July 20, armed Bedouin clans withdrew from the Druze heartland under a fragile ceasefire brokered following over a week of clashes.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that since around midnight, "Sweida has been experiencing a cautious calm", adding government security forces had blocked roads leading to the province to prevent tribal fighters from heading there.

Sectarian clashes that erupted on July 13 between the Druze and Bedouin rivals drew in the government, Israel and armed tribes from other parts of Syria, killing more than 1,000 people according to the Observatory.

President Ahmad al-Sharaa on July 19 announced a ceasefire in Sweida and renewed his pledge to protect Syria's ethnic and religious minorities.

The Interior Ministry said overnight that Sweida city was "evacuated of all tribal fighters, and clashes within the city's neighborhoods were halted.”

A spokesman for Syria's tribal and clan council told Al-Jazeera that fighters had left the city "in response to the call of the presidency and the terms of the agreement.”

A medic inside Sweida also told the media that "the situation is totally calm... We aren't hearing clashes."

"No medical or relief assistance has entered until now," the medic said.

Inside the city, where around 150,000 people live, residents have been holed up in their homes without electricity and water and food supplies have also been scarce.

The Bedouins' withdrawal brought a cautious calm to the area, with humanitarian convoys reportedly on their way.

Sharaa's announcement came hours after the United States said it had negotiated a ceasefire between Syria's government and Israel, which had bombed government forces in both Sweida and Damascus earlier in the week.

[HH] Syria at ‘critical juncture’

Commenting on the situation, U.S. special envoy to Syria Tom Barrack said that the country stood at a "critical juncture,” adding that "peace and dialogue must prevail, and prevail now.”

"All factions must immediately lay down their arms, cease hostilities, and abandon cycles of tribal vengeance," said Barrack, who also served as U.S. Ambassador to Türkiye.

"Brutal acts by warring factions on the ground undermine the government's authority and disrupt any semblance of order.”