Sweida (Syria) (AFP) – The mainly Druze residents of the Syrian city of Sweida had hoped the arrival of government forces on Tuesday would spell an end to deadly sectarian clashes with local Bedouin tribes.
Instead they spoke of executions, looting and arson as government troops and their allies rampaged through Druze neighbourhoods, prompting thousands from the religious minority to flee.
“Government forces entered the city on the pretext of restoring order… but unfortunately they indulged in savage practices,” said Rayan Maarouf, editor in chief of the Suwayda 24 news website.
“There have been cases of civilians being killed… dozens of them… but we don’t have precise figures,” he added, blaming government fighters and their allies.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, government forces executed 12 civilians in a guesthouse in the city, in just one incident among many said to have taken place in the area.
Syria’s defence minister had declared a “complete ceasefire” in the city late Tuesday morning, but locals said the announcement had little effect on the ground.
An AFP correspondent who entered Sweida shortly after government forces reported dead bodies left lying on deserted streets as sporadic gunfire rang out.
“I’m in the centre of Sweida. There are executions, houses and shops that have been torched, and robberies and looting,” one Sweida resident holed up in his home told AFP by phone.
“One of my friends who lives in the west of the city told me that they entered his home, chased out his family after taking their mobile phones and then set fire to it,” added the resident, who asked not to be identified for fear of retribution.
AFP correspondents saw smoke rising over several areas of the city of some 150,000 people.
Another resident said he had seen armed men in civilian clothes “looting shops and setting fire to them”.
“They’re firing indiscriminately, I am afraid to leave the house,” he said, adding that he regretted “not leaving before they arrived”.