AFP
Tue, April 29, 2025
This handout picture released by the Syrian Interior Ministry Facebook page shows Syria's security forces standing guard in a street in the mostly Druze and Christian Jaramana suburb of Damascus (-)-/Syrian Interior Ministry Facebook Page/AFPMore
Syria's Islamist-led government promised Druze leaders Tuesday that it would try those responsible after its security forces clashed with Druze fighters in a Damascus suburb, leaving 14 combatants dead.
In a deal reached with representatives from the mainly Druze and Christian suburb of Jaramana, authorities also promised measures to "put an end to incitement to sectarian and regional division", according to a text seen by AFP.
"An agreement has been reached," said Rabih Mounzer, a member of a civilian coordination group in Jaramana who was among the delegates.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said seven security personnel and seven Druze fighters were killed in the clashes which erupted on Monday night and continued into Tuesday.
They were sparked by the circulation on social media of an audio recording deemed blasphemous and met with condemnation from leaders of the Druze religious minority.
The violence follows sectarian massacres last month in the Alawite coastal heartland -- the worst bloodshed since Islamist-led forces overthrew longtime president Bashar al-Assad in December.
While seeking to present a more moderate image to the world, the new authorities must also contend with pressures from radical Islamists within their ranks.
"Heavy clashes erupted in Jaramana after security forces and affiliated gunmen stormed" parts of the suburb, the Britain-based Observatory said.
The violence was spurred by "the circulation of an audio recording, attributed to a Druze citizen, containing religious insults", it added.
AFP was unable to confirm the recording's authenticity.
The interior ministry reported "intermittent clashes between groups of gunmen", saying security forces deployed "to break up the clashes and protect the residents".
The justice ministry said it would "not tolerate any attack on the Prophet" Mohammed but stressed that the courts were the "sole legitimate recourse" and called on residents to "refrain from hate speech".
- 'Full responsibility' -
An AFP correspondent saw gunmen shooting into the air during the funeral for two security force members killed in the clashes.
Jaramana's Druze religious leadership condemned "the unjustified armed attack" that "targeted innocent civilians and terrorised" residents.
"We strongly condemn any insult against" the Prophet Mohammed, the statement said, calling the audio recording an attempt to "sow strife and division".
It said the authorities bore "full responsibility for the incident".
Local residents said the fighting had subsided by morning.
Riham Waqqaf, a 33-year-old humanitarian worker, said she was staying home with her husband and children.
She expressed worry that Jaramana "might turn into a battlefield... I am afraid of the situation escalating further".
- Alawite massacres -
Security forces deployed in Jaramana last month following clashes between security forces and gunmen tasked with protecting the area.
At the time, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz warned the Islamist-led authorities not "to harm the Druze" minority, which is also spread across Lebanon and Israel.
Druze leaders rejected the Israeli warning and declared their loyalty to a united Syria.
The clashes in Jaramana mark the latest test for the Islamist authorities, who have roots in the Al-Qaeda jihadist network but have vowed inclusive rule in the multi-confessional, multi-ethnic country.
The authorities have been seeking to persuade Western capitals that the jihadist origins of the forces who toppled Assad are confined to the past, and that crippling international sanctions should be lifted.
Druze representatives have been negotiating with authorities on an agreement to integrate their armed groups into the new national army.
Last month's violence on the Mediterranean coast saw security forces and allied groups kill more than 1,700 civilians, mostly Alawites, according to the Observatory's figures.
The government of interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, whose Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) led the offensive that toppled Assad, accused loyalists to the former leader of sparking the violence by attacking security forces, and has launched an inquiry.
burs-lar/nad/kir/ysm
More than a dozen killed in sectarian clashes near Syrian capital
Reuters
Tue, April 29, 2025
Syrian security forces check vehicles at the entrance of Druze town of Jaramana
University students gather in Jaramana after sectarian clashes
Syrian security forces check vehicles at the entrance of Druze town of Jaramana
More than a dozen killed in sectarian clashes near Syrian capital
Syrian security forces check vehicles at the entrance of Druze town of Jaramana
DAMASCUS (Reuters) -More than a dozen people were killed in a predominantly Druze town near the Syrian capital on Tuesday in clashes sparked by a purported recording of a Druze man cursing the Prophet Mohammad which angered Sunni gunmen, rescuers and security sources said.
The fighting marked the latest episode of deadly sectarian violence in Syria, where fears among minorities have been swelling since Islamist-led rebels ousted former leader Bashar al-Assad from power in December, installing their own government and security forces.
Those fears spiked after the killings of hundreds of Alawites in March in apparent revenge for an attack by Assad loyalists.
The clashes began overnight when gunmen from the nearby town of Maliha and other predominantly Sunni areas converged on the mostly Druze town of Jaramana, southeast of Damascus, security sources said.
The fighting, with small and medium arms fire, left 13 people dead, according to local rescue workers.
Among the dead were two members of Syria's General Security Service, a new security force comprised mostly of former rebels, according to interior ministry spokesperson Mustafa al-Abdo.
Abdo denied that armed gunmen had attacked the town, saying instead that groups of civilians angered by the voice recording had staged a protest that came under fire from Druze groups.
The Interior Ministry said in a statement it was investigating the origin of the voice recording and called for calm, urging citizens not to let emotions lead to violence or damage to public property.
Druze elders met with security forces in a bid to prevent further escalation, a Syrian security source said.
"What was said by a few individuals against our Prophet represents only them and is rejected by us and all of society," Druze religious leader Sheikh Yousef Jarbou said, calling on both communities to reject efforts to fuel sectarian divisions.
Representatives of the Syrian government and Druze community leaders in the town agreed later on Tuesday to hold those involved in the attack accountable, Syrian state news agency Sana reported. They also agreed to work on reducing sectarian and communal mobilization.
Syria's nearly 14-year war carved the country into various zones of influence, with the Druze - an Arab minority who practise a religion originally derived from Islam - arming themselves to defend their own towns.
The new Islamist-led leadership in Damascus has called for all arms to fall under their authority, but Druze fighters have resisted, saying Damascus has failed to guarantee their protection from hostile militants.
Community leaders blamed the government for failing to prevent Tuesday's attack and warned that it would bear responsibility for any future repercussions.
"The authorities are responsible for preserving security," Rabei Munzir, a local Druze activist in Jaramana, told Reuters.
Neighbouring Israel has said that it was willing to intervene in Syria to protect the Druze, thousands of whom also live in Israel and in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, which Israel captured from Syria in the 1967 Six-Day war.
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