The Israeli military launched its offensive and struck Syria’s defence ministry in Damascus on Wednesday and powerful strikes hit the area near the presidential palace, as deadly sectarian fighting escalated after Tel Aviv vowed to destroy government forces attacking Druze province of Suweida in southern Syria. The Syrian foreign ministry accused Israel of “treacherous aggression” as Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended the move and said its forces were "working to save our Druze brothers and to eliminate the regime's gangs". The Israeli hostilities have marked another escalation of violence in the Middle East region and this time against the Islamist-led administration of interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa. Ahmed had warming ties with the US administration and the interim Syrian government had evolving security contacts with Israel, yet the country is facing a violent aggression from Tel Aviv. We have engaged all the parties involved in the clashes in Syria. We have agreed on specific steps that will bring this troubling and horrifying situation to an end tonight. This will require all parties to deliver on the commitments they have made and this is what we fully… — Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) July 16, 2025 Reports suggest more than 300 people have been killed in Suweida since Sunday, when clashes between Druze militants and Bedouin tribes started. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: "My brothers, the Druze citizens of Israel: the situation in Sweida, the situation in south-western Syria, is very serious. — Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) July 16, 2025 The United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said that he is “very worried” about the violence in southern Syria and believed it would end within hours. “We have engaged all the parties involved in the clashes in Syria. We have agreed on specific steps that will bring this troubling and horrifying situation to an end tonight,” Rubio said in a post on X. However, Israel has accused the new Syrian rulers as “disguised jihadists” and refused to allow the Syrian administration to move their forces into southern Syria, in order to protect the area's Druze community from attack. Diplomats have said that the United Nations Security Council is also poised to meet on Thursday to address the violence and sectarian conflict. The council must condemn the barbaric crimes committed against innocent civilians on Syrian soil," Israel's ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, said. Syria’s foreign ministry has said that it welcomes the efforts made by the US and Arabian sides to resolve the crisis peacefully. Syria’s state news agency Sana reported that Syrian forces have started to withdraw from Suweida.
