Sweida stand-off eases as Syria set for talks with Israel

Sources in Jordan say hundreds of pro-government fighters pull back from front line

Syrian security troops remain in the Sweida area after days of fighting. Ahmad Fallaha for The National

Hundreds of pro-government fighters have withdrawn from a front line near Sweida in southern Syria, sources in Jordan said on Thursday.

The retreat of about 500 gunmen comes before a US-supervised meeting between Syrian and Israeli officials to contain the conflict, which has affected regional stability.

The withdrawal of fighters stationed at the rear of the front line has lessened the thrust of an offensive on the north-western approaches to Sweida city, the provincial capital, the sources said.

Sweida's Druze defenders have resisted waves of attacks since June 10 but hundreds of members of the sect have been killed. Israeli raids to defend Syria's Druze, and US diplomatic pressure on Damascus, have contributed to curbing the government attacks.

Israeli and Syrian officials were to meet in the Azerbaijani capital of Baku on Thursday to discuss containing the hostilities. Axios first reported that Tom Barrack, the US envoy to Syria and Turkey, had arranged the meeting.

However, officials from Turkey, the most powerful backer of the post-Bashar Al Assad government in Syria, will also be present in Baku, along with US officials, two diplomats said.

In the past 24 hours, an auxiliary force comprised mainly of militiamen from the mostly Sunni governorate of Deraa, a launch pad of attacks on Sweida, has dispersed to other areas in Deraa, the sources said.

“Israeli drones have been hovering over their heads, and they risked being wiped out had they tried to advance,” said one of the sources, who has been monitoring the conflict from Jordan's border with Sweida.

The force was part of a loose 1,000-man formation led by army and intelligence officers who have been using drones and Grad rockets to attack rural Druze areas next to the city of Shahba, near Sweida city.

Since the hostilities broke out on June 12, Sweida has been under a government siege. The province remains without electricity, and its supplies of drinking water are running out, according to Suwayda 24, a network of citizen journalists. The organisation said that 90,000 residents of western villages and towns attacked by government forces had fled to areas in the south of the governorate, and remain displaced.

The EU said in a statement that "all parties, in particular the transitional authorities" must ensure "urgent, safe and unrestricted humanitarian access."

Israel conducted an aerial campaign last week that killed hundreds of Syrian military personnel, curbing a government offensive on Sweida. The city's Druze leadership has largely opposed attempts by Damascus to send security forces to take control of the area. The central government is dominated by Hayat Tahrir Al Sham, a splinter group of Al Qaeda that ousted the former regime in December.

Uniting Syria

The violence has called into question President Ahmad Al Shara's ability to unite the country. Mr Al Shara scored a significant win in May when US President Donald Trump announced he would lift sanctions on Syria, but the latest instability has given some American politicians pause for thought.

Republican Representative Mike Lawler last week introduced a bill that would amend US sanctions legislation to allow it to be waived only if the Syrian government is not targeting civilians, among other provisions.

"The Al Shara Administration certainly has a lot of work to do to reintegrate Syria with the US and our allies,” said Mr Lawler. Others say there should be a clean repeal of US sanctions in line with Mr Trump's agenda.

Syria has signed several investment deals with Gulf countries under the new regime. Some 47 deals with Saudi Arabia were being signed at a Syrian-Saudi Investment Forum in Damascus on Thursday.

The Syrian economy has been devastated by the civil war that began in 2011 after an uprising against the Bashar Al Assad regime. The UN Development Programme estimates cumulative losses, including physical damage and economic deprivation, at $923 billion as of the end of last year. The estimated cost of reconstruction has varied from $250 billion to $500 billion.

Syria TV reported that explosion of "war remnants and ammunition" was to blame for a deadly blast in the Idlib countryside on Thursday. Syria's Health Ministry said two people were killed and 70 injured.