Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar on Saturday slammed Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, accusing him of supporting jihadists.
"The speech of Syrian President Ahmed al-Shara was a display of support for the jihadists attackers (in al-Shara’s words: 'The Bedouin tribes as a symbol of noble values and principles') and blaming the victims (the attacked Druze minority)," Sa'ar posted on X.
"Al-Shara spiced all this with conspiracy theories and accusations against Israel.
"Bottom line: In al-Shara’s Syria, it is very dangerous to be a member of a minority—Kurd, Druze, Alawite, or Christian. This has been proven time and again over the past six months."
Sa'ar also urged the world to step up, adding, "The international community has a duty to ensure the security and rights of the minorities in Syria and to condition Syria’s renewed acceptance into the family of nations on their protection."
Fierce fighting broke out Friday in Syria’s Druze-majority Sweida region as armed Bedouin tribal factions, backed by Syria’s Islamist-led interim government, clashed with local Druze fighters at the city’s entrance, AFP reported.
The confrontation follows the Syrian army’s Thursday withdrawal from Sweida after Israeli airstrikes and intense diplomatic pressure. Following the latest outburst, Syria’s government announced on Friday evening that it will redeploy forces to the area.
The conflict has already claimed at least 638 lives since Sunday, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR). The United Nations has demanded an end to the "bloodshed" and an "independent, prompt and transparent investigation into all violations." UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk emphasized that "the protection of all people must be the utmost priority."
Renewed hostilities erupted as some 200 tribal fighters engaged Druze combatants in street-level exchanges using machine guns and shells, while shelling struck city neighborhoods, SOHR and AFP reported.
The International Committee for the Red Cross warned: "Health facilities are overwhelmed, medical supplies are dwindling and power cuts are impeding the preservation of human remains in overflowing morgues." Stephan Sakalian, ICRC’s Syria chief, described the situation as "critical. People are running out of everything."
The renewed outbreak of violence marks the bloodiest escalation since Druze protests and military clashes in April-May around Sweida and Damascus, which left more than 100 dead.