At least 248 people have been killed in Syria’s southern Sweida province following a wave of intense clashes over the past several days, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a UK-based war monitor.
The violence, as stated in The Hindu, has triggered the large-scale deployment of government forces in an area that had largely remained on the periphery of the Syrian civil war.
The fighting, rooted in escalating tensions between the Druze minority and Syrian government forces, marks one of the bloodiest confrontations in the province in recent years.
According to the times of Israel, among the dead are 92 members of the Druze community, a religious minority with a significant presence in Sweida. The Observatory reported that 28 of the Druze victims were civilians, with at least 21 killed in summary executions carried out by pro-government forces, signaling a grave violation of international humanitarian law.
SOHR also confirmed the deaths of 138 Syrian government security personnel, along with 18 Bedouin fighters allied with Damascus. These figures suggest a significant escalation in hostilities and a growing rift between local armed groups and the Syrian regime.
While the precise spark for the current violence remains unclear, the conflict appears to be rooted in longstanding grievances over government neglect, forced conscription, and worsening economic conditions. Druze factions in Sweida have grown increasingly vocal against perceived attempts by the Assad regime to tighten control over the province, which has maintained a precarious autonomy since the start of the Syrian civil war in 2011.
“The executions reported by local sources are deeply alarming,” said a representative from the Syrian Network for Human Rights. “This is a stark reminder that the cycle of impunity continues in Syria, with devastating consequences for civilian populations.”
The Syrian government has yet to release an official statement on the deaths or address allegations of extrajudicial killings. However, local pro-regime media outlets have framed the offensive as an anti-terror operation, labeling the Druze fighters as "armed militias threatening national unity."
