Why Israel is bombing Syria again? The Druze-Bedouin clashes in Sweida explained

Smoke billows following Israeli strikes near the Syrian army and defence ministry headquarters in Damascus on July 16, 2025. (Photo by Rami al SAYED / AFP)

Israel on Wednesday said it bombed a "military target" in the area of Syria's presidential palace in Damascus in Damascus, marking a dramatic escalation in regional tensions. The strike comes in response to intensifying violence in Sweida province, home to Syria’s Druze minority, where sectarian clashes between Druze groups and Bedouin tribes have spiralled into the deadliest fighting in months, leaving nearly 250 people dead.

The Israeli military confirmed the strike in a statement: “A short while ago, the (Israeli military) struck the entrance of the Syrian regime's military headquarters in the area of Damascus in Syria.”

This retaliatory action follows days of bloodshed in Sweida and a warning issued by Israel to the Syrian government, accusing it of targeting the Druze and violating a ceasefire agreement with the minority community. The situation has triggered a broader Israeli warning about Syrian troop presence near its borders, which Tel Aviv says it will not tolerate.

What sparked the clashes in Sweida?

The latest round of violence in Sweida, a majority-Druze city in southern Syria, reportedly began on Sunday after the kidnapping of a Druze vegetable merchant. That incident triggered a chain reaction of tit-for-tat abductions between local Druze fighters and members of rival Bedouin tribes.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based war monitor, the situation escalated rapidly, drawing in government forces. On Tuesday, Syrian troops entered Sweida claiming to enforce a ceasefire negotiated with Druze leaders. However, multiple eyewitness reports say that instead of neutral peacekeeping, Syrian forces joined the Bedouin in attacking Druze civilians and fighters, unleashing a “bloody rampage” through the city.

The Observatory says at least 248 people have been killed since Sunday, including 92 Druze (28 of them civilians) and 138 government security forces, along with 18 allied Bedouin fighters. Among the Druze dead, 21 were reportedly executed summarily by Syrian government forces.

Why is Israel involved?

While Israel has long viewed the Syrian conflict through the lens of its border security, its recent military response is being framed around the protection of the Druze minority, a community with historical and cultural ties to Israel. Around 140,000 Druze live in Israel, and the country’s leaders have repeatedly signalled they would not stand by if Druze populations in Syria came under sustained attack.

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz issued a stark warning to Damascus just before the strike: “As we have made clear and warned, Israel will not abandon the Druze in Syria and will enforce the demilitarisation policy we have decided on. Syrian forces should withdraw.”

He added: “Israel will raise the level of responses against the regime if the message is not understood.”

Israel’s airstrike came shortly after these remarks.

A borderline security strategy?

While Israel's government publicly frames its intervention as a moral duty to protect the Druze, many analysts argue that the true motivation may also include strategic military interests. Israel has consistently demanded that southern Syria, especially the area near the Golan Heights, be demilitarised, fearing the presence of hostile forces including Iranian militias, Hezbollah, or any Islamist-led Syrian factions.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made this clear in February that Southern Syria must be completely demilitarised. He warned that Israel would not accept the presence of forces of the Islamist-led government near territory it controls.

On Wednesday, following the strike, Israel announced it was sending reinforcements to the Golan border. “In accordance with the situational assessment, the (Israeli military) has decided to reinforce its forces in the area of the Syrian border,” a military statement said.

Druze community: “An existential battle”

The Druze community in Israel has been vocal about the threat their co-religionists in Syria are facing. Sheikh Mowafaq Tarif, head of Israel’s Druze population, described the situation in Sweida as: “An existential battle for the Druze community.”

On the ground, fighting is still ongoing. An AFP correspondent in Sweida reported sporadic gunfire, columns of smoke, and shelling, with bodies of both plainclothes and uniformed fighters visible in the streets. The local Suwayda 24 news site described “intense shelling with heavy artillery and mortars.”

Broader context: Who controls Syria now?

Since the toppling of President Bashar al-Assad in December by Islamist-led factions, Syria’s political landscape has become increasingly fragmented. The new ruling authorities have struggled to manage relations with the country’s ethnic and religious minorities, including Alawites, Christians, Kurds — and Druze.

Observers say the government’s handling of the Sweida clashes could further isolate minorities, especially if it is perceived to be favouring certain tribes over others or using force indiscriminately.