Israel strikes Syrian military headquarters in Damascus, citing threats to Druze civilians

 
        The Israeli Defence Forces, IDF, struck the Syrian regime’s military headquarters in Damascus, citing threats to Druze civilians. Over the past 24 hours, Israeli aircraft also targeted tanks, rocket launchers, and armed vehicles heading toward Sweida in southern Syria. The Syrian Health Ministry has said that one civilian has been killed and 18 others injured in the Israeli strikes. The strikes follow violent clashes between Druze fighters and Syrian interim government forces. Dozens of Israeli Druze crossed from the Golan Heights to support relatives amid the unrest. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that regime forces executed at least 19 Druze civilians. The violence began after a Druze man was attacked by armed Bedouins, prompting retaliation. Community leaders have called for immediate de-escalation as heavy fighting continues in the region.
The Druze, an Arab sect of about one million, mainly live in Syria, Lebanon, and Israel. Originating in 11th-century Egypt, they practice a strict Islam offshoot forbidding conversion and intermarriage. In Syria’s south and the Golan Heights, Druze mostly identify as Syrian and reject Israeli citizenship.