ISTANBUL

The Syrian government dispatched buses to Suwayda on Tuesday to evacuate families trapped in the southern city amid security unrest.

Syria’s state news agency SANA said that the buses began to enter the city to move the trapped families out of the area.

The agency published photos showing several buses heading toward the city.

On Monday, a local official in the southwestern Daraa province told Anadolu that displacement from Suwayda to his area was still ongoing.

According to local authorities in Daraa, over 3,500 families from Bedouin and Druze communities have fled their homes in Suwayda to the nearby province.

On July 13, clashes broke out between Bedouin Arab tribes and armed Druze groups in Suwayda. Violence escalated, and Israeli airstrikes followed, targeting Syrian military positions and infrastructure, including in the capital Damascus.

While Israel cited the “protection of Druze communities” as a pretext for its attacks, most Druze leaders in Syria have publicly rejected any foreign interference and reaffirmed their commitment to a unified Syrian state. A ceasefire took hold on Saturday.

The new Syrian government has been working to reestablish order nationwide since the ouster of former President Bashar al-Assad on Dec. 8, 2024.