General Security enter Damascus countryside to restore order following clashes

General Security forces have been deployed in the Damascus countryside to restore order following a spike in clashes, the Syrian interior ministry said.

The violent clashes between armed groups in the Damascus countryside erupted on Tuesday evening, causing at least 11 deaths and dozens of injuries, local media reported.

The clashes continued until Wednesday morning and involved gunmen and residents from the Ashrafieh Sahnaya area, local sources told The New Arab’s sister publication, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.

The sources also added that the confrontations resulted in the death of Sheikh Wajdi al-Hajj Ali, a Druze leader, who was shot in the head and died before he arrived to the hospital.

The Sheikh al-Karama Forces, which emerged in 2014, issued a statement following his death, expressing deep sorrow and grief and condemning what they called "extremist organisations trying to infiltrate the city".

The clashes paused for a brief while as armed forces withdrew, demanding the bodies of their dead to be retrieved. However, reports stated they resumed attacks again after being bolstered with reinforcements and mobilising fighters from Daraa.

Residents from the town of Inkhil in Daraa also reported that groups had gathered to attack Ashrafieh Sahnaya, ignoring calls from key figures and leaders to halt the clashes.

Ashrafieh Sahnaya was gripped with panic and fear in the evening, particularly after videos emerged of armed forces calling for the fighting of residents. Local sources also told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that Syrian general security forces imposed a curfew at 11 pm until Wednesday morning.

Some local individuals, who preferred to stay anonymous, told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that the groups fired a barrage of mortar shells on the town, and the tensions also spread to other villages, including Tha’la and Ad-Dour in the western countryside of the Suweida governorate, southeast of Damascus.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and defence minister Israel Katz on Tuesday also issued a statement saying the Israeli army carried out a "warning operation" targeting a group that was allegedly preparing to attack the Druze community in Sahnaya.

They also noted that they sent a message to the government in Damascus calling on them to intervene and prevent any harm that may be caused to the Druze. 

On Wednesday afternoon, the General Security in Syria launched a large-scale combing operation in the area, with the aim of arresting gangs and armed individuals, SyriaTV reported. 

A security source told the news outlet that the gangs in used the Ashrafieh Sahnaya area as a "base for their terrorist operations against residents and security forces".

Tensions in Jaramana

Meanwhile, a meeting was held in the city of Jaramana on Tuesday, including a government delegation and representatives of civil and local society members, following recent clashes that resulted in the killing of at least six people.

During the meeting, an agreement was reached that would ensure the rights of the families of victims and hold the perpetrators of the recent attack accountable.

Those present at the meeting also vowed to investigate the incidents to find out what happened, and the coverage of the events to reduce any sectarian or regional escalation.

This comes after Syrian security forces and armed groups in Damascus on Tuesday clashed, with exchanges of fire taking place at various checkpoints, most notably the Naseem checkpoint and the Maliha area.