Tel Aviv [Israel], July 16 (ANI): Israeli aircraft struck Syrian military targets in southern Syria as ethnic violence between the Syrian Druze and Bedouins intensified, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said, as reported by the Press Service of Israel (TPS). In the past 24 hours, the Israeli Air Force hit tanks, rocket launchers, weapons, pickup trucks armed with heavy machine guns, and access routes leading to the city of Suweida. At least 248 people have been reported killed over several days of ethnic clashes, with government forces loyal to interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa siding with the Sunni Bedouins.
Earlier, dozens of Israeli Druze breached the border near the Syrian village of Khader to aid their Druze brethren. Sheikh Mowafaq Tarif, spiritual leader of Israel’s Druze community, accused the Israeli government and military of abandoning their commitments to protect Druze civilians across the border. He called the violence “a brutal massacre” of Druze civilians, saying, “Innocent civilians — women, children and the elderly — are being murdered in cold blood. This is not a clash between Druze and Bedouins — it’s between the Druze and ISIS.”
In response, the IDF rushed reinforcements to the border, prepared for further breaches and protests, and requested additional police support. Israeli Druze leaders declared days of mourning and a general strike in their communities and warned that more Druze may cross the border if attacks continue. In a statement, Druze leaders said, “We expect the Israeli government to enter the battle in a way that does not imply any double standards, for the sake of our brothers who are being slaughtered in Syria, just as we are standing at the forefront in defence of the state.”
Tarif said representatives had appealed to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Isaac Herzog, and defence officials for immediate Israeli airstrikes to halt the Syrian offensive, warning that inaction could damage the relationship between the Druze community and the state.
Earlier in the day, the IDF struck the entrance to the Syrian military headquarters in Damascus. Netanyahu adjourned his corruption trial in Tel Aviv early to meet with security officials. On Tuesday, dozens of Israeli Druze crossed into Syria while others blocked roads in protest. Defence Minister Israel Katz warned that Syrian forces would face “painful blows” until they withdrew from Suweida, saying, “The signals in Damascus are over — now painful blows will come. The IDF will continue to operate vigorously to destroy the forces that attacked the Druze until their full withdrawal.”
The Druze community in Israel numbers about 152,000 and has called on the government to take stronger measures to protect co-religionists in southern Syria, where about 40,000 Druze live under Israeli protection. Netanyahu has also called for the demilitarisation of southern Syria.
Earlier this year, Israel set up a field hospital near the Syrian village of Hader and sent forces into the buffer zone to prevent rebels from approaching the border after Bashar al-Assad’s regime collapsed in parts of the region. Israel has also conducted airstrikes on Syrian army and Iranian stockpiles to prevent them from falling into the hands of extremists.
The demilitarised zone, established in 1974 after the Yom Kippur War, has been violated several times since the Syrian Civil War began in 2011. The Druze in Israel trace their ancestry to Jethro, the father-in-law of Moses. They speak Arabic but are not Muslim and have long served in senior positions in Israeli public and military life. The Golan Druze, who initially rejected Israeli citizenship after 1967, have increasingly aligned with Israel since the Syrian conflict erupted. (ANI)
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