Fighting has engulfed the Druze-majority city of Sweida in southern Syria, leaving over 200 people dead. This week, Druze villages have been overrun by Syrian regime forces and allied Islamist militias under the guise of ‘restoring order’, only for those forces to unleash executions, looting and arson upon Druze neighbourhoods. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, 92 Druze were killed (including 21 civilians executed by government troops) in the space of a few days. In one incident, an 80-year-old Druze sheikh had his moustache, a symbol of honour, forcibly shaved by invading fighters. He was reportedly killed shortly afterwards. This is, it appears, the dark reality of ‘national unity’ under Syria’s new rulers.
Syrian extremists shave off the mustaches of captured Druze men and film it to humiliate them.
It comes as Syrian militias have been carrying out massacres against the Druze community, with hundreds killed in the city of Sweida.
— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) July 19, 2025
Islamic forces are pushing forward against the Druze in Sweida after capturing the northern and western neighborhoods.
The number of Islamist men who went/are heading south is estimated to be equivalent to 50% of the entire Druze population in the province. The numbers are… pic.twitter.com/G66xam8aum
— Imtiaz Mahmood (@ImtiazMadmood) July 19, 2025
