Protests Continue in Syria's Sweida as US Congressman Reportedly Contacts Druze Leader

Protesters chant slogans during a protest in the Druze-majority city of Sweida, southwestern Syria, 15 September 2023. (EPA)
Protesters chant slogans during a protest in the Druze-majority city of Sweida, southwestern Syria, 15 September 2023. (EPA)
TT
20

Protests Continue in Syria's Sweida as US Congressman Reportedly Contacts Druze Leader

Protesters chant slogans during a protest in the Druze-majority city of Sweida, southwestern Syria, 15 September 2023. (EPA)
Protesters chant slogans during a protest in the Druze-majority city of Sweida, southwestern Syria, 15 September 2023. (EPA)

The anti-regime protests have continued in Syria’s Sweida amid reports that an American congressman contacted spiritual head of the country's Druze community to discuss the rallies.

News spread on social media on Saturday that Congressman French Hill had contacted Sheikh Hikmat al-Hajri. They spoke by telephone for over half an hour.

Hill reportedly inquired about "what was really happening in Sweida" and the overall situation in the southern province in wake of news that the protesters in front of the Baath party branch in Sweida city were fired at.

Syrian opposition figure Maher Sharafeddine said Hill expressed his pride in contacting Hajri, hoping to develop relations further with him.

Hill did not disclose information about his reported talks with Hajri and the latter did not issue any statement to confirm them either.

Three people were wounded on Wednesday when bullets were sprayed at anti-government protesters in Sweida, activists and local journalists said, in the first reported use of violence in weeks-long demonstrations there.

Activists, who have been taking to the streets to call for President Bashar al-Assad to step down over worsening living conditions, accused members of the ruling Baath party of firing.

Hajri has been the target of a fierce campaign by regime and Iran loyalists after he accused Iran of "occupying" Syria and calling for "jihad" against it.

In an open letter to Hajri, MP Khaled Abboud said that should the reports about his and Hill’s talks be true, then "it is evident who is behind the protest movement" and "this puts us in confrontation with it."

On Friday, the US embassy in Damascus said Washington was concerned over reports that the Syrian regime was quelling the Sweida rallies.

Washington supports the right of the Syrian people for peaceful protests in their pursuit of a dignified life, freedom, security and justice.

It added that the political solution, based on United Nations Security Council 2254, was the sole way to resolve the conflict in Syria.

Conflict erupted in Syria in 2011 with rallies against Assad in the country's south and quickly morphed into an all-out war that has left hundreds of thousands dead and displaced millions.

Assad recaptured most of the country with help from his allies Russia and Iran. Even with frontlines calmer, the country's economy remains in tatters and its humanitarian needs have skyrocketed.

Still, open criticism of the government was extremely rare in Assad-held areas until the government's decision to lift fuel subsidies last month, prompted fresh protests concentrated in Sweida.

Hajri, on Wednesday blamed "corrupt" security forces for the incident, which he said would not deter protests.

"The main thing is restraint, and we won't give up on our peaceful demands. The street is with us. ... (We will stay) a day or two or a month or years," Hajri said.



Suspected US Airstrikes in Yemen Kill at Least 4 People Near Hodeidah

A man holds a rifle as protesters, mainly Houthi supporters, rally to mark the annual al-Quds Day (Jerusalem Day) on the last Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, in Sanaa, Yemen March 28, 2025. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
A man holds a rifle as protesters, mainly Houthi supporters, rally to mark the annual al-Quds Day (Jerusalem Day) on the last Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, in Sanaa, Yemen March 28, 2025. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
TT
20

Suspected US Airstrikes in Yemen Kill at Least 4 People Near Hodeidah

A man holds a rifle as protesters, mainly Houthi supporters, rally to mark the annual al-Quds Day (Jerusalem Day) on the last Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, in Sanaa, Yemen March 28, 2025. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
A man holds a rifle as protesters, mainly Houthi supporters, rally to mark the annual al-Quds Day (Jerusalem Day) on the last Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, in Sanaa, Yemen March 28, 2025. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

Suspected US airstrikes battered Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen into Wednesday, with the militias saying that one strike killed at least four people near the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah.

The intense campaign of airstrikes in Yemen under US President Donald Trump, targeting the militias over their attacks on shipping in Mideast waters stemming from the Israel-Hamas war, has killed at least 65 people, according to casualty figures released by the Houthis.

The campaign appears to show no signs of stopping as the Trump administration again linked their airstrikes on the Iranian-backed Houthis to an effort to pressure Iran over its rapidly advancing nuclear program. While so far giving no specifics about the campaign and its targets, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt put the overall number of strikes on Tuesday at more than 200.

“Iran is incredibly weakened as a result of these attacks, and we have seen they have taken out Houthi leaders,” Leavitt said. “They’ve taken out critical members who were launching strikes on naval ships and on commercial vessels and this operation will not stop until the freedom of navigation in this region is restored.”

Overnight, a likely US airstrike targeted what the Houthis described as a “water project” in Hodeidah governorate's Mansuriyah District, killing four people and wounding others. Other strikes into Wednesday targeted Hajjah, Saada and Sanaa governorates, the militias said.