The Media LIne: UN: Over 1,700 killed in As-Suwayda Clashes Last Year  

UN: Over 1,700 killed in As-Suwayda Clashes Last Year  

Rizik Alabi/The Media Line   

[Damascus] A United Nations investigation reported that more than 1,700 people were killed and nearly 155,000 displaced during a week of violence that erupted in Syria’s southern As-Suwayda governorate in July 2025, according to a report issued by the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic.  

The 85-page report indicated that most of the victims were civilians from the Druze minority, alongside Bedouin individuals and at least 225 government forces personnel. It also revealed that up to 155,000 people remain displaced, describing the humanitarian situation as “still unresolved months after the fragile ceasefire.”  

As-Suwayda, located in southern Syria, is predominantly Druze, with Bedouin tribes moving throughout the region. Prior to the clashes, the governorate had experienced escalating tensions between local armed groups and Bedouin tribes over control of water resources and grazing lands, along with repeated calls for greater security enforcement and stricter oversight.  

In July 2025, the crisis erupted when Bedouin groups attempted to enter Druze areas where the government maintained a limited security presence, triggering violent clashes that prompted government forces to intervene to secure areas and impose a ceasefire.  

This conflict is among the deadliest in Syria since large-scale military operations subsided around 2020, and it highlights the ongoing risk of local clashes between tribes and minority groups over land and administrative control, as well as their potential to destabilize the region.   

In contrast, a government-appointed inquiry in Damascus reported on March 17, 2026, that it had documented 1,760 deaths and 2,188 injuries among all parties involved. According to the Syrian Arab News Agency, or SANA, the committee confirmed “serious human rights violations” involving “multiple parties, including local armed groups and elements linked to ISIS [Islamic State], in addition to members of government and security forces.”  

The government inquiry stated that the army and public security attempted to prevent the tribes from entering As-Suwayda, but the density of their numbers and lapses by some security personnel hindered these efforts. Other testimonies said that public security forces turned some groups back and escorted them out of the governorate after they had already entered.  

The UN report highlighted that all parties committed serious violations of international humanitarian and human rights law, including killings, torture, arbitrary detentions and attacks on civilian infrastructure. The commission noted that some of these violations could constitute war crimes and, in certain cases, crimes against humanity.  

The United Nations warned that the absence of accountability for these violations risks reigniting local conflict and called on Syrian authorities and all parties to conduct comprehensive, impartial investigations that include senior officials and commanders.  

The report further emphasized that justice and genuine reconciliation efforts are essential to address the aftermath of violence in As-Suwayda and prevent a resurgence of conflict in Syria, which continues to face the long-term consequences of its protracted war.