Syria sees ‘cautious calm’ in Suweida after deadly clashes

A UK -based observation group said that “cautious calm” returned to the Syrian city of Sweden after a week of deadly tribal clashes between Druze fighters, Bedouin militants and government forces.

The residents reported that the fighting stopped on Sunday when the government led by the Islamic Syria announced that the Bedouins had withdrawn from the city, which most of them “after days of bloody battles and chaos.”

This was followed by the ceasefire announced by the President of Syria on Saturday, That did not suppress the fighting immediately.

Sohr added that more than 1,000 people were killed in the clashes and there is now a severe shortage of medical supplies in the city.

The United Nations Immigration Agency said on Sunday that at least 128,000 people of displacement due to violence.

“Activists reported that Suwaida has suffered a cautious calm since the early hours of Sunday morning,” Sur said.

“Meanwhile, the Syrian government security forces closed roads leading to Suwaida to the tribes, using soil barriers to prevent vehicles from crossing, except for ambulances, in a move to contain tensions.”

Sohr added that the city is still under the control of the local Druze fighters, while the tribal militants withdrew from several areas inside the province.

Long -term tensions erupted between the Druze and Bedouins tribes to fatal sectarian clashes a week ago, after the kidnapping of a Druze merchant on the road to the capital, Damascus.

The government of temporary President Ahmed Al -Sharra responded by deploying the forces in the city.

Both Druze and Badwin fighters were Accused of atrocities over the past seven days, In addition to members of the security forces and the interim government.

On Saturday, Al -Sharra announced the ceasefire and sent the security forces to Sweden to end the fighting.

It was reported that the Druze fighters pushed Badwin militants outside the city on Saturday evening – but the violence continued in other parts of the province. This has not been verified by the BBC.

On Sunday morning, it was not possible to hear the fighting, according to Agence France Presse correspondents near Suwaida.

Meanwhile, Sohr warned that the humanitarian situation in the city was getting worse, pointing to a “severe shortage” of basic medical supplies.

“The smell of the bodies is spread throughout the National Hospital,” said one of the unveiled residents.

Kenan Azim, a local dentist who speaks as a city, said what he called “tense calm”, that hospitals were a “disaster and outside service.”

Suweida Medic told AFP that “any comfort or medical assistance” entered the city before Sunday.