Israel Allows Limited Access Of Syrian Troops To Sweida After Deadly Clashes

JAKARTA - Israel has allowed limited access for Syrian troops to the Sweida region of southern Syria for the next two days.

This permit comes after days of bloodshed in and around the Syrian city of Sweida, which is inhabited by the majority of Druze.

"Given the ongoing instability in southwestern Syria, Israel has agreed to allow the entry of internal security forces (Suriah) on a limited basis to the Sweida district for the next 48 hours," the Israeli government official who declined to be named told reporters. reported by Reuters, Friday, July 18.

A spokesman for the Syrian Ministry of Home Affairs said government forces were not preparing to be deployed back to Sweida Province.

Syrian forces withdrew from Sweida after a ceasefire was announced on Wednesday, but another clash took place on Thursday night between fighters from the Bedouin and Druze, who are a religious minority in Syria who have followers in Lebanon and Israel.

Clashes in parts of Sweida Province continued until Friday, according to residents of Sweida and Ryan Marouf, head of local media Sweida24.

Damascus this week deployed troops to Sweida, which borders Israeli-controlled territory, to try to defuse some of Syria's most intense internal battles since the interim government came to power late last year.

The Syrian Human Rights Network (SNAHR) monitoring group said it had documented 254 people killed in four days of fighting, including medical personnel, women, and children.

Israel was involved in hostilities on Wednesday. Israel said it would not allow the Syrian government led by Islamic groups to deploy troops to the south, attack Syrian forces in Sweida and the Syrian Ministry of Defense, and attack near the presidential palace in Damascus.

Israel, which describes Syria's new rulers as a barely disguised jihadist, vowed to protect the Druze community in the region from attacks, driven by calls from Israel's own minority Druze.