Syria thaws relations with Druze ahead of President Al Shara's US trip

Fate of Syria's minorities a concern for some American legislators, who will be voting on lifting sanctions

A fire burns near Sweida city in Syria in July, when government forces intervened in clashes between Druze fighters and Bedouin tribes. Getty Images

Syrian authorities have made conciliatory moves towards the mostly Druze province of Sweida, the scene of some of the worst violence in Syria since the downfall of the Assad regime, days before President Ahmad Al Shara visits Washington.

Officials announced the lifting of a freeze on the salaries of Druze public employees in Sweida and the arrest of those suspected of kidnapping a Druze doctor, who died after being abducted during violence against members of the sect.

Hundreds of Druze were killed in July during clashes in Sweida involving armed members of the sect, Bedouin fighters and government forces. The province's Druze areas have since been all but cut off from the rest of Syria.

Sweida Governor Mustafa Al Bakour said on Telegram on Wednesday that the government would resume salary payments to public workers in the province, which were halted after the July violence.

He said "legal and organisational measures" had been taken to pay the staff of 29 civil departments in the province.

On Thursday, Ahmad Al Dalati, a senior security official involved in operations in Sweida, announced on Telegram the arrest of eight members of a "cell" suspected of kidnapping Dr Hamza Shahin from his clinic in a town south of Damascus last month. After three days, the physician died from "maltreatment" by his captors.

Mr Al Dalati said the arrests took place in the area of Al Lajat, near Sweida, and that the kidnappers were looking for a ransom.

The moves come ahead of a landmark trip by Mr Al Shara to Washington, where he is scheduled to meet US President Donald Trump at the White House on Monday.

However, some US legislators have voiced concerns about the fate of Syria's minorities under the government that came to power after Mr Al Shara's Hayat Tahrir Al Sham rebel group, a former Al Qaeda affiliate, led an offensive that ousted former president Bashar Al Assad in December last year.

Congress is due to vote on legislation that would scrap the bulk of US sanctions in Syria, which could encourage foreign investment and shore up the position of Mr Al Shara's government.

White House confirms Trump meeting with Ahmad Al Shara in Washington

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A source monitoring Sweida from Jordan said the two announcements could result in an "improvement of atmosphere" between authorities in Damascus and the Druze. They pointed out that restrictions on movement in and out of Sweida had been eased in recent weeks, although security forces remain around the province.

Sweida's situation "seems to be improving, which is what the Americans want, as well as Israel", the source said. The core political issues between Sweida and the central government remain unresolved, they added.

"The Druze want decentralisation. But the government cannot give any official concessions to Sweida in this regard, because it would have to give the Kurds something similar," the source said, referring to another minority in the country with unresolved issues with Damascus.

The Druze are an ancient Arab minority that has struggled for survival since modern Syria was formed from the remnants of the Ottoman Empire a century ago.

Loyalist forces killed hundreds of Druze civilians in the operation in July, which the authorities said was carried out to contain clashes between the Druze and Sunni Bedouin. Druze militias killed dozens of Bedouin, including civilians, after government forces entered the province.

Strikes launched by Israel, which claimed it was acting to defend the Druze, led the pro-government forces to withdraw from Sweida city, the provincial capital. The government, however, has set up a de facto administrative capital for Sweida in Mazraa, a Druze town its forces captured in June, sources in Jordan say.

In September, the US brokered a deal to reconcile the Syrian government with the Druze, allow for freedom of movement in and out of Sweida, restore government functions in the area, and prosecute those involved in violence against civilians. Under the deal, the UN's Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria visited Sweida last month.