INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa said on Thursday that protecting Druze citizens and their rights is “our priority”, as
Israel vowed to destroy Syrian government forces attacking Druze in southern Syria, Reuters reported.
In his first televised statement after
powerful Israeli air strikes on Damascus on Wednesday, Sharaa addressed Druze citizens saying “we reject any attempt to drag you into
hands of an external party”.
“We are not among those who fear the war
We have spent our lives facing challenges and defending our people, but we have put the interests of the Syrians before chaos and
destruction,” he said.
He added that the Syrian people are not afraid of war and are ready to fight if their dignity is
threatened.
Israel’s airstrikes blew up part of Syria’s defence ministry and hit near the presidential palace as it vowed to destroy
government forces attacking Druze in southern Syria and demanded they withdraw.
The attacks marked a significant Israeli escalation against
Sharaa’s Islamist-led administration
They came despite his warming ties with the U.S
and his administration’s evolving security contacts with Israel, read the report.
Describing Syria’s new rulers as barely disguised
jihadists, Israel has said it will not let them move forces into southern Syria and vowed to shield the area’s Druze community from
attack, encouraged by calls from Israel’s own Druze minority.
The U.S
said the fighting would stop soon.
“We have engaged all the parties involved in the clashes in Syria
We have agreed on specific steps that will bring this troubling and horrifying situation to an end tonight,” Secretary of State Marco
Rubio said on social media.
The United Nations Security Council will meet on Thursday to address the conflict, diplomats said.
“The
council must condemn the barbaric crimes committed against innocent civilians on Syrian soil,” said Israel’s ambassador to the U.N.,
“Israel will continue to act resolutely against any terrorist threat on its borders, anywhere and at any time.”
The Syrian Network for
Human Rights said 169 people had been killed in this week’s violence
Security sources put the toll at 300
Reuters could not independently verify the tolls.
Reuters reporters heard warplanes swoop low over the capital Damascus and unleash a
series of massive strikes on Wednesday afternoon
Columns of smoke rose from the area near the defence ministry
A section of the building was destroyed, the ground strewn with rubble, Reuters reported.
An Israeli military official said the entrance to
the military headquarters in Damascus was struck, along with a military target near the presidential palace
The official said Syrian forces were not acting to prevent attacks on Druze and were part of the problem.
“We will not allow southern
Syria to become a terror stronghold,” said Eyal Zamir, Israel’s military chief of staff.
Sharaa faces challenges to stitch Syria back
together in the face of deep misgivings from groups that fear Islamist rule
In March, mass killings of members of the Alawite minority exacerbated the mistrust.
Druze, followers of a religion that is an offshoot of
Islam, are spread between Syria, Lebanon and Israel.
Following calls in Israel to help Druze in Syria, scores of Israeli Druze broke through
the border fence on Wednesday, linking up with Druze on the Syrian side, a Reuters witness said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
said the Israeli military was working to save the Druze and urged Israeli Druze citizens not to cross the border
The Israeli military said it was working to safely return civilians who had crossed, Reuters reported.
Israeli Druze Faez Shkeir said he
felt helpless watching the violence in Syria.
“My family is in Syria – my wife is in Syria, my uncles are from Syria, and my family is
in Syria, in Sweida, I don’t like to see them being killed
They kicked them out of their homes, they robbed and burned their houses, but I can’t do anything,” he said.
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