Syria: 100 Dead in Two Days – Druze Religious Leader Accuses Genocide Campaign

An attack against the transitional president of Syria, Ahmed al-Sar, was condemned today (01.05.2025) by the religious leader of the Druze community, who accused a “genocide campaign” targeting his community. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, interfaith clashes have left over 100 dead in the past two days. These conflicts near and south of Damascus between Druze fighters and armed groups linked to Sunni Islamists currently in power highlight the instability that persists in Syria, nearly five months after the fall of President Bashar al-Assad’s regime. In a statement, Sheikh Hikmet Al-Hijri denounced an “unjustified genocide campaign” targeting “civilians inside their homes” and called for “immediate intervention by international forces.” He added, “We no longer trust an entity claiming to be a government… A government does not kill its people using its own extremist police forces and then blames uncontrollable groups after the massacres.” Reacting to this, Syrian Foreign Minister Asad al-Saibani tweeted that any call for foreign intervention would worsen the situation and lead to further divisions. The fighting in the communities of Jaramana and Sahnaqiya, home to Christians and Druze, and in Sweida, where the majority are Druze, has revived fears of massacres that killed more than 1,700 people in early March, most of whom were from the Alawite minority, the sect of former President Assad. Israel views the Sunni Islamists in power in Damascus as an increasing threat on its borders and has stated it will defend the Druze minority, whose faith is a branch of Islam with members in Syria, Lebanon, and Israel. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar urged the international community to protect minorities in Syria, particularly the Druze, from the regime and its terrorist gangs. Meanwhile, Israel continues airstrikes, claiming they target Syrian government assets. Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblatt accused Israel of exploiting Syrian Druze for its long-term plan to divide the region into religious entities and spread chaos.