According to foreign media reports, US has announced its agreement towards "specific steps" to assist in bringing an end to the recent escalation of violence in southern Syria.
The announcement was made just hours after Israeli troops conducted airstrikes against strategic targets in Damascus and Suweida, including the Syrian defense ministry and government-held positions.
Israel s military confirmed that it had conducted strikes against Syrian military facilities in both Damascus and Suweida. One of the strikes landed close to the entrance of Syria s Defense Ministry at Umayyad Square, a very symbolic site in the capital.
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Other Israeli strikes apparently aimed at armoured personnel carriers, weapons convoys bound for Suweida, and a nearby military facility close to the presidential palace.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the military operations were aimed at "protect our Druze brothers and break regime-related gangs." Defence Minister Israel Katz made a similar appeal on X, that Israel would continue its war effort in Suweida "until all enemy forces are eliminated.
Notably, Israel hit Damascus after a fierce sectarian battle in the overwhelmingly Druze province of Suweida was erupted. These clashes between local Druze militias and Bedouin tribes claimed more than 300 lives since Sunday.
After Israel attacked Damascus, American Secretary of State Marco Rubio reacted on social media site X (previously Twitter) with concern, stating, "We are gravely concerned about the atrocious events taking place in Suweida. But we hope that peace will be restored very soon." Rubio confirmed that tangible actions had been mutually agreed, though he did not reveal more information.
In reply, Syrian state media accepted and appreciated American and Arab diplomatic endeavors to settle the conflict peacefully.
The Syrian government troops started withdrawing from Suweida after negotiations with local Druze religious leaders, the state-run news agency SANA stated.
However, Syria s Foreign Ministry sharply criticised the attacks as a "flagrant violation of international law" and accused Israel of trying to create instability in the region.
