US, Israel, Syria Talk Amid Deadly Attacks on Druze and Christians
by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Chief International Correspondent
JERUSALEM/DAMASCUS (Worthy News) – Senior officials from the United States, Israel, and Syria are due to meet Thursday to negotiate urgent security arrangements in southern Syria, after a week of deadly sectarian violence and Israeli military strikes targeting Syrian forces near Damascus.
The meeting, confirmed by U.S. and regional sources, will be chaired by U.S. Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack, who has been mediating between the parties.
It marks the first direct engagement since the outbreak of deadly clashes in the city of Suwayda (also spelled Sweida), a predominantly Druze area, and the Israeli airstrikes that followed, according to sources familiar with the talks.
“There is relative calm now, but the fundamental issues will not be resolved without comprehensive agreements between the U.S., Israel, and the Syrian government,” a senior Israeli official said.
The unrest erupted when Syrian army units moved to suppress a local Druze militia engaged in violent conflict with armed Sunni Bedouin tribesmen, according to multiple sources.
In response, Israel reportedly bombed a Syrian tank convoy reportedly en route to Suwayda, citing a need “to protect Druze civilians”, including those linked to Israel’s own Druze community.
Local reports and humanitarian observers say more than 300 people have been killed, with some estimates approaching 900.
PUBLIC EXECUTIONS
Witnesses described horrific house-to-house raids, public executions, and entire neighborhoods set ablaze in Suwayda and surrounding villages.
Christian communities have also suffered devastating losses amid the violence.
Pastor Chady El Aouad of Abundant Life Church in Beirut confirmed the death of a fellow minister and over 20 of his family members in Suwayda. According to multiple sources, Pastor Khaled Mezhir, leader of the Good Shepherd Evangelical Church in Suwayda, was killed along with his wife, parents, and extended family during fierce clashes between Druze militias and Sunni Bedouin factions, Worthy News learned Sunday.
This tragedy follows the June 22 suicide bombing at Mar Elias Church in Damascus, which killed more than 30 worshippers and wounded many others. No group has claimed responsibility, but Christian leaders warn that Syria’s interim Islamist-led government is failing to protect religious minorities.
“We fear both the silence and the violence,” one church official said. “Christians and Druze alike are being caught between political power struggles and sectarian vengeance.”
The clashes added to a sense of urgency ahead of Thursday’s meeting between Syrian, U.S., and Israeli officials. Sources said the talks were due to focus on preventing further Israeli-Syrian military confrontations as well as exploring long-term guarantees for the protection of religious minorities, including Druze and Christians.
They were also due to “Coordinate humanitarian and security protocols in southern Syria” and discuss “Establishing direct communication channels between Israel and Syria”, well-informed sources said.
SECRET DIPLOMACY
Previous rounds of secret diplomacy occurred in Baku, Azerbaijan, where Israeli National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi met with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Sheibani.
U.S. envoy Barrack warned Syria’s interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, that the country risks “fragmentation and the loss of historic communities” if it fails to curb extremist factions and secure the rights of all citizens. “Syria cannot afford to alienate its historic communities or repeat the sectarian collapses of the past decade,” Barrack said.
The city of Suwayda, historically a stronghold of the Druze minority, has become a flashpoint in Syria’s transition following the overthrow of long-time autocratic President Bashar al-Assad in December. The renewed violence and lack of protection for Christians and Druze have sparked calls for international intervention and fresh scrutiny of Syria’s interim leadership.
Besides violence, “There have been dozens of smaller incidents threatening Christians through pamphlets, insulting social media posts, attacks in the streets and intimidation in casual daily interaction, but also through planned bomb attacks that were foiled by the government,” said Christian advocacy group Middle East Concern (MEC)
“These incidents result from both religious intolerance and historically entrenched injustices and held grudges that burst out after the fall of the Assad regime,” MEC told Worthy News.
“Different cultural and religious values mean different components of Syrian society deal with those issues differently, often taking justice into their own hands, using weapons and seeking retribution. These recent developments cause Christians fearing they may be targeted next [again], to see no future for them in Syria,” the group stressed.
In prayer requests shared with Worrhy News, “The Syrian church requests prayers for Suwayda and Syria,” including for a “Powerful Christian witness” and a “change of hearts of those who seek harm and their own justice.” Besides peace and the return of displaced people, it was crucial to pray that the “interim government act wisely, justly, and efficiently while solving the conflicts, restoring the rule of law, and rebuilding the country,” MEC stressed.
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