Damascus (AFP) – Israel bombed the Syrian army headquarters in Damascus on Wednesday after warning the Islamist-led government to leave the Druze minority alone in its Sweida heartland, where a war monitor says sectarian clashes have killed nearly 250 people.

Syrian state TV reported several Israeli strikes on Wednesday near the army and defence ministry headquarters in central Damascus, and Israel’s military said it had “struck the entrance of the Syrian regime’s military headquarters”.

AFP images showed the side of a building in the defence complex in ruins after the strike, as smoke billowed over the area.

The Syrian health ministry said in a preliminary toll that nine people were wounded in the strikes.

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz called on Damascus to “leave the Druze in Sweida alone”, later threatening in a statement to unleash “painful blows” to “eliminate the forces that attacked the Druze until their full withdrawal” from Syria’s south.

Israel, home to tens of thousands of Druze, said it was sending more troops to the armistice line between the occupied Golan Heights and Syrian-controlled territory.

Dozens of people were trying to cross the heavily fortified frontier, according to AFP correspondent in Majdal Shams, a mainly Druze town in the Israeli-annexed Golan.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged Druze not to cross, warning of a “very serious” situation in Sweida.

A military statement said Israeli forces were “operating to prevent the infiltration” from Syrian territory and to “safely return the civilians who crossed the border” from the Israeli-controlled side.

The Syrian presidency condemned in a statement the “heinous acts” in Sweida, expressing “full commitment to investigating all related incidents and punishing all those proven to be involved”.

Sporadic gunfire continued to ring out in Sweida on Wednesday, an AFP correspondent reported.

Columns of smoke were seen rising from several areas amid the sound of shelling.

The correspondent counted the bodies of around 30 combatants, some in plain clothes and some in military uniform.

The United States, a close ally of Israel, said that “all parties must step back and engage in meaningful dialogue that leads to a lasting ceasefire” in Sweida.

Washington’s special envoy for Syria, Tom Barrack, added on X that the “perpetrators need to be held accountable”.

France said that “the abuses targeting civilians, which we strongly condemn, must stop”, while the European Union urged “all external actors” to “fully respect Syria’s sovereignty”.