Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri, the spiritual leader of the Druze community, said that what is happening in Suwayda (southern Syria) constitutes “a blatant violation of international humanitarian law under the four Geneva Conventions” and amounts, under the Rome Statute, to “crimes of genocide and crimes against humanity.”

In a message addressed to the United Nations Secretary-General, members of the UN Security Council, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Arab League, and Amnesty International, published on October 11, al-Hijri said that “Jabal al-Bashan” (a Hebrew term for Jabal al-Arab, referring to the Suwayda region) has been suffering “for months from a comprehensive and harsh siege threatening civilian lives.”

Al-Hijri said the siege has affected food, medicine, water, fuel, and freedom of movement, while limited international aid passes through “insufficiently,” alleging that such aid is being “exploited for propaganda” to distort the reality of the humanitarian tragedy.

He warned that Suwayda is facing “an unprecedented humanitarian disaster,” with repercussions including:

• Arbitrary suspension of salaries and pensions for employees and contractors.

• A “total paralysis” of public institutions due to the central internet cutoff and the suspension of official document issuance.

• University students’ inability to return to their studies due to what he called “sectarian incitement.”

• Denial of education for school students.

• What he described as the “occupation” of 35 villages in the northern and western parts of the mountain.

• Destruction and looting of vital facilities, including factories, mills, presses, hospitals, fuel stations, and grain and food warehouses.

• The deliberate prevention of fuel delivery to halt production, transport, healthcare, and daily life.

Governor’s Response

Suwayda Governor Mustafa al-Bakour stated that the decline in services is not due to government negligence but rather to “internal positions” and the absence of official communication channels with Damascus. He said the state is “ready to provide resources and services, but some parties are preventing that and insist on operating outside legal frameworks.”

In a meeting with journalists and media representatives on October 8, attended by Enab Baladi, al-Bakour said recent developments have pushed Suwayda to adopt “special positions” that isolated it from state institutions. He accused certain actors of allowing “countries like Israel and the United States to speak on their behalf in international forums,” complicating the situation further.

He added that anyone who tried to contact the government “was threatened,” prompting the authorities to delay action until some local figures began reopening dialogue.

The governor noted that the government secured quantities of wheat and flour for the province, but “the absence of an official authority to receive them” prevented proper distribution. He added that Damascus is ready to supply “large quantities” of fuel, provided that financial oversight occurs in the capital, a condition rejected by “the entities controlling the province,” who insist on keeping funds in the Suwayda bank “under the control of armed factions,” as he put it.

The province has been experiencing a decline in services since mid-July, following clashes between local Druze factions and Bedouin tribes, later expanding with government intervention amid mutual violations and Israeli airstrikes on government forces.

Al-Bakour also revealed that an “illegal committee” seized about 20 billion Syrian pounds ($1.5 million) and one million US dollars from the Suwayda bank, without oversight or official reporting, preventing the disbursement of salaries and direct government funding.

He said the government proposed distributing salaries through the Syrian Arab Red Crescent, but local bodies refused, citing the presence of “illegal committees and factions,” maintaining a narrative that “we are under siege.”

Local factions in Suwayda, led by Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri, had earlier formed a “legal committee” to manage service affairs in the province, which rejected the government’s roadmap for resolution, a plan that Damascus denied coordinating with.

Governor al-Bakour affirmed that state institutions continue to function within their administrative structures despite limited external communication and that the government continues supplying medicines and hospital materials while providing temporary solutions for state-controlled villages, particularly in the western, northern, and eastern countryside.

al-Hijri Calls for Action

Sheikh al-Hijri said the “collapse of the health sector,” due to the “targeting of doctors and nurses” and the “destruction of medical facilities,” has led to “the deaths of several patients because of the lack of medicine and the destruction of infrastructure and medical equipment.”

He described the situation as “systematic pressure and attempts at deliberate extermination.”

Despite this, he said, “the people of the mountain” have adhered to “the ceasefire agreements and international conventions,” emphasizing that “the time has come to lift this unjust siege.”

Al-Hijri called for “the enforcement of international law and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court,” to hold “the interim government accountable for crimes committed against our people, as well as for the continued violations of its affiliated militias and terrorist arms.”

He held “the interim government and its affiliated militias” responsible for “the suffering of the people of Jabal al-Bashan,” appealing to “the United Nations, the Security Council, and the international community” to urgently take the following steps:

1. Immediately lift the siege on Jabal al-Bashan and secure safe humanitarian corridors.

2. Hold accountable those responsible for crimes and violations against civilians before international courts.

3. Ensure the full withdrawal of “armed occupying groups” from the affected villages.

4. Restore all occupied territories to the administrative boundaries of the mountain and implement the ceasefire terms agreed upon since July.

5. Open an international humanitarian crossing to allow aid and materials to enter safely and ensure secure communication with the outside world.

6. Enable the people of the mountain to exercise their right to self-determination under UN supervision, guaranteeing their freedom, dignity, and religious, cultural, and existential security under international protection.

Background on the Suwayda Conflict

The current crisis in Suwayda began on July 12, following mutual kidnappings between residents of al-Maqous neighborhood, predominantly Bedouin, and members of the Druze community. The next day, the situation escalated into armed clashes.

The Syrian government intervened on July 14 to end the conflict, but its intervention was accompanied by violations against Druze civilians, prompting local factions, including those previously cooperating with the Ministries of Defense and Interior, to respond.

On July 16, government forces withdrew from Suwayda following Israeli strikes. This was followed by violations and retaliatory acts against Bedouin residents, prompting the deployment of military reinforcements described as “tribal mobilizations” in their defense.

Later, the Syrian government and Israel reached a ceasefire agreement brokered by the United States, ending military operations.