Overview

• Interim President Ahmad al-Chareh directed the pullout of government troops to avert an open conflict with Israel.
• The withdrawal began Thursday under terms of a US-brokered ceasefire after days of violent clashes between Druze militias and Bedouin tribes.
• Israel has reinforced its border deployments and conducted targeted airstrikes on Syrian military sites around Damascus to enforce southern demilitarization.
• Observers report more than 370 fatalities in Soueida, including allegations that government forces summarily executed Druze civilians.
• Local Druze notables have assumed security oversight in Soueida, highlighting Damascus’s fragile authority and communal fault lines.