Israeli forces carried out air strikes in and around Suwayda as fighting resumed in the Druze-majority city shortly after Syria's defense minister announced a ceasefire. The intervention widened a crisis that had begun with violence between Druze armed factions and Sunni Bedouin groups before drawing in Syrian government forces.
The Syrian government and an influential Druze religious leader offered competing accounts of why the truce broke down. Syria's Interior Ministry accused armed groups of renewing attacks on government troops with Israeli air support. Sheikh Hikmat al-Hajri, by contrast, said government forces had violated the agreement and urged local fighters to resist what he described as an assault. The incompatible claims underscored the difficulty of establishing who controlled armed units on the ground.
Defense Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra had ordered units in Suwayda to observe a complete ceasefire after government troops entered the provincial capital. Earlier, he said an agreement had been reached with local dignitaries and that forces would respond only to incoming fire. Scattered clashes nevertheless continued, alongside allegations that government personnel abused civilians, looted property and carried out killings. Interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa said authorities would take legal action against anyone found responsible for violations, regardless of rank.
Casualty estimates varied and were changing quickly. Syria's Interior Ministry initially reported more than 30 deaths and nearly 100 injuries. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights later put the toll substantially higher and alleged that some people were summarily killed by government forces. The monitor did not provide a complete civilian-versus-combatant breakdown in the cited account, making its figure difficult to compare directly with the ministry's count.
Israel said its strikes targeted Syrian forces and were intended to protect the Druze community and keep armed units away from its border. Israeli leaders have treated the Druze as a community requiring protection; Druze citizens of Israel also serve in the country's military. Syria condemned the attacks as unlawful external interference and said the state remained responsible for protecting all Syrians, including the Druze.
The violence posed another test for Syria's authorities after the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024. Suwayda is the center of Syria's roughly 700,000-strong Druze population, and deadly unrest had already affected Druze areas earlier in 2025. Israel had also repeatedly struck Syrian military sites and taken positions in a UN-patrolled buffer zone. The failed ceasefire therefore reflected both a local communal conflict and a broader contest over security and state authority in southern Syria. US envoy Tom Barrack said Washington was in contact with the parties in an effort to restore calm and encourage integration.
