About 500 people killed in clashes, according to UK war monitor; AFP photographer counts 15 bodies strewn in city center amid looted shops and burned cars and houses

Residents emerged from their homes to scenes of devastation on Thursday after government forces withdrew from the Syrian Druze-majority city of Sweida, leaving behind looted shops, burned homes and

A tense calm returned to Syria’s southern province of Sweida on Thursday as interim government troops fully withdrew after days of violent clashes involving government forces, Druze fighters, and Bedouin tribes.

Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa accused Israel of trying to fracture Syria and promised to protect its Druze minority on Thursday, after U.S. intervention helped end deadly fighting between government forces and Druze fighters in the south.

A walk through the Rachaiya market revealed a town in quiet mourning, as shops shuttered their doors in solidarity with victims of the recent violence in Sweida—part of a broader call from local religious leaders across the district.

Israel intervened in a situation involving the Druze, a religious minority whose members live in Syria and Israel.

Syrian troops pulled out of the Druze heartland province of Sweida Thursday on orders from the Islamist-led government, leaving bodies strewn on the street, AFP journalists reported from the provincia

Over 500 people people have been killed in southern Syria’s Sweida province, a war monitor said Thursday, giving an updated toll after several days of clashes that triggered the deployment of government forces.