Syrian Druze Leader Seeks International Probe Into Deadly Sweida Clashes, Thanks Trump, Israel for Support
Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri, whose forces fought pro-government gunmen in Sweida province in July, expressed gratitude to U.S. President Donald Trump, Israel, and Gulf Arab states for what he described as their role in ending the violence.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) — A prominent spiritual leader of Syria’s Druze community has called for an international investigation into last month’s deadly clashes in southern Syria that left hundreds dead, according to the Associated Press (AP).
Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri, whose forces fought pro-government gunmen in Sweida province in July, expressed gratitude to U.S. President Donald Trump, Israel, and Gulf Arab states for what he described as their role in ending the violence. “Thanks to those who stood by righteousness,” al-Hijri said in a televised address.
The clashes erupted between Druze militias and local Sunni Muslim Bedouin tribes before government troops intervened. While officially tasked with restoring order, Syrian government forces effectively sided with the Bedouins against the Druze, according to AP. Israel, citing humanitarian concerns for its Druze minority, responded with dozens of airstrikes targeting government convoys and even struck the Syrian Defense Ministry in Damascus.
Al-Hijri urged the formation of an international and independent fact-finding commission, with perpetrators referred to the International Criminal Court, and called for international observer missions to safeguard civilians. He praised Israel’s military action as a “humanitarian intervention” that reduced the scale of killings against Druze communities.
His remarks followed his remote participation in a conference in Hassakeh — a Kurdish-led, U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) stronghold — where representatives of Syria’s diverse ethnic and religious groups advocated for a decentralized political system and a new constitution ensuring pluralism.
The Syrian government condemned the conference, accusing some attendees of harboring secessionist aims, and announced it would withdraw from planned talks with the SDF in Paris that had been agreed to in late July. State-run SANA quoted an unnamed official saying the meeting violated a March agreement between Damascus and the SDF.
