After five days of isolation in the southern city of Sweida, 33-year-old Hossam emerged on Thursday to assess the damage from the recent violence, which has left a pervasive smell of death in the area.
Hossam observed burned-out cars scattered across the streets, shattered storefront windows, and pools of blood marking the ground. He noted, "The smell of corpses in Sweida is unbearable." His decision to speak under a pseudonym was made out of fear of potential retribution.
Since Sunday, violence in Sweida has reportedly killed over 500 people, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Hossam described this as the aftermath of the most severe sectarian violence to affect the region since the onset of the Syrian civil war.
During the clashes between government forces and militias from the Druse minority, Hossam had barricaded himself at home. Following a temporary truce, he ventured out to assess the devastation in the city.
At Sweida’s public hospital, Hossam witnessed a steady stream of vehicles arriving at the emergency entrance, bringing in individuals injured from the clashes. Many others were searching for lost relatives, fearing they were dead.
The hospital’s morgue was filled with the bodies of soldiers and civilians who had died in the conflict, with many additional corpses laid out in a yard outside, covered with tarps due to a shortage of body bags.
This outbreak of violence represents the third significant instance of sectarian conflict in Syria since the removal of long-time dictator Bashar al-Assad last year. It has heightened concerns about a potential descent into broader sectarian strife as the new leadership attempts to establish control over a nation fragmented by nearly 14 years of civil war.
The recent violence in Sweida began with a series of attacks and kidnappings involving Sunni Muslim Bedouin tribes and Druse militias. As the situation escalated, the Syrian government deployed military forces to the region in an effort to restore order.
However, some Druse militia leaders, harboring distrust towards Syria’s new Islamist authorities, believed the incoming Sunni-led government forces were poised to attack them. This led to a mobilization of the militias to confront the government forces, resulting in further violence, which reportedly involved Israeli military intervention.
At least 516 individuals, including soldiers, fighters, and civilians, have been reported dead in the violence, according to the Syrian Observatory. Additionally, more than 20 people were reportedly killed in extrajudicial executions carried out by government forces, who also engaged in looting and setting homes ablaze in Sweida. The exact number of civilian casualties remains unclear.
Syria’s new president, Ahmed al-Shara, stated in a televised address that authorities would “hold accountable those who have transgressed against and abused our Druse people, as they are under the protection and responsibility of the state.”