Sweida

Syrian Druze leader says community is ‘inseparable part of Israel,’ hints at developments in Sweida

Al-Hijri also suggested that developments concerning Sweida could emerge “within days,” without elaborating on their nature, as the province remains the focus of intensifying diplomatic activity.

|ByRIZIK ALABI/THE MEDIA LINE
A woman carries a Druze and an Israeli flag as members of the Druze community in Israel and their supporters near the US Embassy in Jerusalem to show solidarity with their community in neighbouring Syria, on July 16, 2025.
Rescuers and onlookers gather at the site of a blast near Damascus August 6, 2026.

At least two killed, 14 wounded in deadly bomb attack in predominantly Druze area near Damascus

The targeted street in Jaramana is somewhat narrow and includes shops and street vendors, Imad said, as people clamored around him.

|ByREUTERS
Tribal and Bedouin fighters deploy in the predominantly Druze city of Sweida, amid clashes with Druze gunmen in July 2025.

UN: No progress on Sweida peace plan as Syria’s Druze tensions persist

Ongoing rivalries, kidnappings and political disputes have derailed efforts to rebuild trust in Syria’s Sweida province, a UN official warned.

|ByREUTERS
A syrian refugee takes part in a demonstration in Athens calling for women rights on March 8, 2017.

Majority of women abducted in Syria sectarian violence remain missing, report finds

In 2025, the Syrian Feminist Lobby documented 82 abduction cases across the Syrian coast, western Hama countryside, and Homs. Some 10% were girls, while 90% were women aged 15 to 40.

|ByDANIELLE GREYMAN-KENNARD

Cold war brewing in Syria as Druze, Kurds, and Alawites resist al-Sharaa's rule

BEHIND THE LINES: Syria remains deeply divided along ethnic lines, with a series of ongoing “cold wars” underway between minority communities and the new Sunni Arab authorities.

JUNE 20, 2026ByJONATHAN SPYER
VOLUNTEERS OF the National Guard participate in a simulation training in Sweida in January. Pro-Israel and anti-Damascus regime sentiments typically mark this heartland of the Druze community in Syria.

Jordan is enforcing a red line in Syria via airstrikes - analysis

The Kingdom of Jordan has carried out airstrikes in Syria targeting drug smugglers near Sweida.

MAY 3, 2026BySETH J. FRANTZMAN
A view of a Royal Jordanian Air Force aircraft before the airdrop operation of aid over Gaza on August 14, 2025.

Syria cracks down on Hezbollah plots, drug smuggling

Syria is cracking down on terrorist plots and drug trade, busting Iran-backed terror cells and shutting down Hezbollah-linked smuggling plots.

APRIL 20, 2026BySETH J. FRANTZMAN
A view of the drugs seized in a successful operation carried out by the Anti-Narcotics Directorate in the Jaramana district of Rif Dimashq province, displayed at the Anti-Narcotics Directorate in Damascus, Syria on April 15, 2026.

Israel must stop Damascus from absorbing Sweida - opinion

Damascus’s plan for Sweida could reshape Israel’s northern frontier.

MARCH 2, 2026ByAMINE AYOUB
A drone view shows the remains of a destroyed tank, following deadly clashes between Druze fighters, Sunni Bedouin tribes and government forces, in Syria's predominantly Druze city of Sweida, Syria July 25, 2025.

US efforts helped pave way for Syria-Druze deal, source tells 'Post'

Months of US diplomacy paved the way for a historic detainee swap between Damascus and the Druze of Sweida, marking a breakthrough in Syrian peace efforts.

FEBRUARY 26, 2026BySETH J. FRANTZMAN
Members of the military police stand near a bus carrying released detainees during a prisoner exchange between the Syrian government and Druze factions, in Sweida, Syria, February 26, 2026.

Damascus, Druze forces exchange prisoners after Sweida violence

The swap involved Damascus releasing 61 prisoners from the Druze factions detained in Adra Central Prison near the capital.

FEBRUARY 26, 2026ByREUTERS
Syrian security forces walk together along a street, after clashes between Syrian government troops and local Druze fighters resumed in the southern Druze city of Sweida early on Wednesday, in Sweida, Syria July 16, 2025.

Syrian government, Druze renew participation in new US-backed talks - report

Reports say that a prisoner deal in Sweida could pave the way for a deal that resolves the crisis with Damascus and provides locals with administrative and security powers.

FEBRUARY 24, 2026BySETH J. FRANTZMAN
A Syrian man takes up arms at a gasoline station in a frontline village on January 23, 2026 in Sweida, Syria.

A witness to the apocalypse: Sweida atrocities will stay with me forever - opinion

What will become of Sweida is now a global responsibility.

FEBRUARY 10, 2026ByL. CHNEIF
PEOPLE STAND inside a destroyed home in Sweida, Syria, that had been targeted in a massacre of Druze villages in the area by Syrian forces.

Syria's future: Can Ahmed al-Sharaa reconcile democracy, Islam, and minority rights? - opinion

Ahmed al-Sharaa clearly does not believe his twin aspirations are mutually incompatible, though they may be. Where is an Islamic state that is truly democratic?

FEBRUARY 9, 2026ByNEVILLE TELLER
Syria's President Ahmed al-Sharaa delivers a speech on the first anniversary of Bashar al-Assad's fall, in Damascus, Syria December 8, 2025.

Damascus acting with US backing to control Jabal al-Druze in southern Syria, official says - KAN

Citing the official, KAN reported that American support is conditional on Sharaa's actions not harming Israel's national security. 

JANUARY 25, 2026ByMIRIAM SELA-EITAM
People stand next to a destroyed tank turret, following deadly clashes between Druze fighters, Sunni Bedouin tribes and government forces, in Syria's predominantly Druze city of Sweida, Syria July 25, 2025.