Syrian government forces have started withdrawing from the southern province of Sweida following days of vicious clashes with militias from the Druze minority.

Israel carried out strikes against Syrian government forces in southern Syria, saying it was acting to protect the Druze minority.

Israel launched airstrikes in Damascus on Wednesday, saying it aimed to protect Syrian Druze, a part of a minority that also has followers in Lebanon and Israel.

Why did Israel stand up for the Druze in Syria? Russia benefits from Israeli intervention, because there are no former terrorists. The observer writes about the current situation in the Middle East Pravda.

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The Wednesday airstrikes of Israel in Syria have put the Druze community at the epicentre of the conflict with both contries vowing to protect this minority community.

"Silence and standing idly by are no longer an option,” Druze leader Sheikh Mowafak Tarif wrote. Israel's Druze spiritual leadership called on its community to prepare to assist their Syrian counterparts “by all means necessary,

Syrian forces had deployed in the southern city of Sweida, despite Israeli warnings, trying to contain clashes between members of the Druze minority and Bedouin.