Ceasefire in Sweida Breaks Quickly as Druze Threaten Secession from Syria

The ceasefire brokered in Sweida between Syrian government forces, Israel, the Druze, and local Sunni Bedouins lasted only a few hours.

According to multiple media sources, including the Foreign Intelligence Reports project, after Syrian troops withdrew from the city, fighters of the Druze Military Council in Sweida launched a major counteroffensive. Israeli drones and air forces supported this operation.

By evening, the majority of As-Sweida had returned to the control of the Military Council, with reinforcements being deployed in the surrounding rural areas.

It is also reported that a group of Druze-Israeli citizens crossed the border into Syria to join the fighting.

As of now, the Syrian military has been forced to retreat.

Additionally, for the first time on the battlefield, the Falcon Squad has been identified – an elite UAV unit linked to the former Hayat Tahrir al-Sham. Its operators carried out strikes using FPV drones against enemy vehicles.

The sharp escalation of the conflict indicates the failure of recent negotiations in Baku between Ahmed al-Sharaa and Israeli representatives — an agreement was likely not reached.

Sheikh Marwan Kiwan, one of the main religious leaders of the Druze in Syria, stated that if a federal or decentralized governance system for Syria is not achieved, they will consider joining Israel.

As previously reported, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) struck units of the Syrian government forces deployed in the Sweida area.

The Israeli government stated that these strikes targeted the “regime’s forces and weaponry deployed in the Sweida area,” as, according to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, this “violates the agreed demilitarization policy, which prohibits the deployment of troops and heavy weaponry in southern Syria and poses a threat to Israel’s security.”

On July 15, Syrian government forces entered the city of Sweida, a city predominantly Druze by ethnic composition. Their deployment triggered reactions both from local armed groups and from Israel.

The Syrian Ministry of Defense confirmed the deployment of troops, explaining that it was necessary to stop intercommunal violence and disarm the Druze and Sunni Bedouin groups, who had been engaged in fierce clashes for several days prior.