This morning, the always-unsettled Middle East became a little less unsettled. But, it seems, only a little. On Saturday morning, the U.S. envoy to Syria, Tom Barrack, announced that a cease-fire agreement had been reached between Israel and Syria.
U.S. envoy to Syria Tom Barrack said early Saturday that Israel and Syria had agreed to a ceasefire following Israel’s intervention this week in fighting between Syrian government forces and rival armed groups.
A cease-fire between Israel and Syria - but the other elements in this conflict, the local Bedouin clans in Syria and the Syrian Druze minority, apparently don't feel bound by any such agreement.
The announcement came as renewed clashes erupted between Druze groups and Bedouin clans and Syria’s president said he would send troops back in to quell the fighting, which has left tens of thousands of people displaced in a worsening humanitarian crisis.
Barrack said in a statement posted on social platform X that the new ceasefire between Israel and Syria was supported by Turkey, Jordan and other neighboring countries and called for “Druze, Bedouins, and Sunnis to put down their weapons and together with other minorities build a new and united Syrian identity in peace and prosperity with its neighbors.”
Sending in troops may inflame the situation - but then, things in that part of the world are already pretty inflamed.
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This latest bout of fighting began last Sunday in Syria's southern province of Sweida. Clashes between the local Sunni Muslim Bedouin clans and the Druze are still happening, cease-fire or no cease-fire. Israel stepped in to help the Druze, whom they see as allies; Israel has a substantial Druze minority as well.
Israel intervened in defense of the Druze, launching dozens of airstrikes on convoys of government fighters and even striking the Syrian Defense Ministry headquarters in central Damascus. The Druze form a substantial community in Israel, where they are seen as a loyal minority and often serve in the Israeli military.
The fighting killed hundreds of people over four days, with allegations that Syrian government-affiliated fighters executed Druze civilians and looted and burned homes.
On Wednesday, the Syrian government reached a truce with Druze groups, mediated by the U.S., Turkey and Arab countries, and began withdrawing its forces from the province. Under the accord, Druze factions and clerics were to maintain the internal security in Sweida as government forces pulled out, Syria’s interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa said Thursday.
It doesn't seem to be working.
The United Nations’ migration agency said Friday that nearly 80,000 people had been displaced altogether since clashes started on Sunday.
It also noted that essential services, including water and electricity, have collapsed in Sweida, telecommunications systems are widely disrupted, and health facilities in Sweida and Daraa are under severe strain.
Syrian government forces, just to make things even more complicated, have been accused of crimes in the area, including looting and murder. Most of these have been aimed at the Druze, along with the area's Alawite and Christian communities
As of this writing, it's unclear whether the United States will be working to broker any more cease-fire agreements.
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