Israel says it was hit near the Palace of Syria on violence in the Druze regions

Israel says that its combat aircraft bombed an area next to the presidential palace in the capital of Syria, Damascus, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged to protect the Druze religious minority days after the deadly sectarian violence.

Netanyahu said that the strike was a “clear message to the Syrian regime”, which “Israel will not allow the deployment of forces south of Damascus or any threat to the Druze community.”

The Syrian presidency said that it strongly condemned the strike, describing it as a “dangerous escalation” aimed at destabilizing Syria.

Israel also carried out strikes south of Damascus on Wednesday during clashes between Druze militants, security forces and Sunni Islamic fighters.

A spiritual leader of the Druze of Syria, Sheikh Hekkam Al -Hajri, condemned the violence on Thursday as a “unjustified genocide campaign” against his community and called for intervention by the international forces to preserve peace.

Other religious leaders in Druze showed an early statement on Friday, confirming what they said was “the commitment of society to a country that includes all Syrians, a nation -free nation,” according to Associated Press.

According to what they said, they said that the state must be activated in the province of Suwaida, and that the authorities should control the Swedish Damaskus Highway.

The Syrian government said that it had deployed security forces for Druze areas to combat “external groups” that accused it of inciting the clashes.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a UK -based monitoring group, at least 109 people this week was killed in the Ashrafa Satanaya, a town in the southern suburbs of Damascus, which is the Jaramana suburb, and the southern Swedish province, which has Druze.

She says this includes 11 Druze civilians and 26 Druze fighters, in addition to 42 other Druze men who were shot dead in “ambush” by the security forces while traveling from Sweden to Damascus on Wednesday. Thirty members were killed in public security service and allied fighters.

Istanbul -based Syria TV reported that the Israeli air strike near the presidential palace had targeted an empty space, and that there were no reports of victims or material damage.

The Israeli Minister of Defense issued a statement saying that when the Syrian president woke up and saw the results that “he would understand well that Israel is determined to prevent harm to the Druze in Syria.”

He added: “It is the duty of (Shar) to protect the Druze in the outskirts of Damascus from the jihadist attackers and allow hundreds of thousands of Druze in Suwaida and Druze Druze to defend themselves on their own, instead of sending the jihadist forces to their societies.”

In a statement issued on Friday afternoon, the Syrian presidency said that it “condemned the most powerful conditions for bombing the presidential palace yesterday by the Israeli occupation, which constitutes a dangerous escalation against state institutions and state sovereignty.”

He added: “This reprehensible attack reflects the continuation of the reckless movements that seek to destabilize the country and exacerbate security crises.”

The presidency also called on the international community alongside Syria in the face of the attacks, which it said violates international law.

Meanwhile, a religious leader in Suwaida, Sheikh Hamoud Al -Hanawi, told BBC that the situation is “still tense” in the affected areas.

“What is happening now is the sectarian targeting by extremist elements (and) the state’s duty to protect civilians,” he said.

“We support the rule of law and national sovereignty of Syria, as long as the national government protects its citizens and is committed to its commitment to rebuilding modern Syria.”

When asked if he supports Israeli intervention, Sheikh Hinnawi said: “It is not a matter of whether you are with or against Israel – it is a matter of life and death for us and if we are attacked, we have every right to defend ourselves.”

On Thursday, a member of the security forces deployed in the Satanaya Ashrafa told the BBC that “they do not target any sect, but rather deal with an armed group that behaves outside the law, regardless of its religious affiliation,” adding: “Any group of this will be held accountable.”

Sectarian violence erupted in Jaramana on Monday evening after an audio clip of a man insulting the Prophet Muhammad on social media and angered Sunni Muslims. It was attributed to Druze cleric, but he denied any responsibility. The Ministry of the Interior also said that the initial investigation was removed.

Druze faith is a branch of Shiite Islam with its unique identity and beliefs. Almost half a million of its followers live in Syria, where they make up about 3 % of the population, while there are smaller societies in Lebanon, Israel and the occupied Golan Heights.

The Syrian Transitional President, Ahmed Al -Shara, promised to protect many religious and ethnic minorities in the country since his Sunni Islamic group led an attack on the Al -Bashar al -Assad regime in December 13 years of destroyed civil war.

However, mass killings of hundreds of civilians from the Assad minority sect in the Western coastal area in March, during the clashes between the new security forces and Assad’s loyalists, are solid fears between minority societies.

In February, the Israeli Prime Minister warned that “he would not tolerate any threat to the Druze community in southern Syria” from the new security forces in the country.

Netanyahu also demanded the abolition of the full reform of Sweden and two other southern provinces, saying that Israel witnessed the Sunni Islamic group, Tarr al -Sham (HTS), as a threat. HTS is a precedent subsidiary of a base that is still known as a terrorist organization by the United Nations, the United States, the European Union and the United Kingdom.

The Israeli army has already carried out hundreds of strikes throughout Syria to destroy military assets in the country during the past four months. Toures have also sent to the United Nations buffer zone among the highlands occupied by other Golan, occupied by Israel, as well as many neighboring areas and the summit of Hermon Mountain.