Syria is grappling with deep ethnic and religious divisions following the ouster of Syria's autocratic President Bashar Assad in December, which brought an end to decades of Assad family rule
Demonstrators gather to commemorate Palestinian Prisoners’ Day in Ramallah city in the occupied West Bank. Pic/AFP
Syria's transition remains 'on a knife-edge' and violence could resume at any moment in the southern city of Sweida, which saw deadly clashes last month, the top UN envoy for Syria warned on Thursday. Geir Pedersen told the UN Security Council that while violence in Sweida has largely subsided following a ceasefire, 'the threat of renewed conflict is ever-present ' as are the political centrifugal forces that threaten Syria's sovereignty, unity, independence and territorial integrity.'
Syria is grappling with deep ethnic and religious divisions following the ouster of Syria's autocratic President Bashar Assad in December, which brought an end to decades of Assad family rule. The transition has proven fragile, with renewed violence erupting in March along the coast and in July in Sweida, a city with a significant Druze population, highlighting the continued threat to peace after years of civil war.
Clashes erupted in Sweida on July 13 between Druze militias and local Sunni Muslim Bedouin tribes, and government forces intervened, nominally to restore order but they ended up essentially siding with the Bedouins. Israel intervened in defence of the Druze, launching dozens of airstrikes on convoys of government fighters.
Pedersen said in a video briefing to the council that although the July 19 ceasefire agreement has largely held, 'we are still seeing dangerous hostilities and skirmishes on the margins of Sweida. And violence could resume at any moment'. Pedersen expressed concern that 'a month of relative military calm belies a worsening political climate, with escalatory and zero-sum rhetoric hardening among many'.
The UN envoy said there is an urgent need for security forces under the transitional government led by interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa to demonstrate that they are acting to protect all Syrians. Pedersen called for major security sector reforms in Syria and the disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration of non-government forces.
He warned that international support for Syria 'risks being squandered or misdirected' without a genuine political transition that lays the path for long-term stability, good governance, credible reforms and a firm commitment to the rule of law and justice. UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher called the humanitarian situation in Syria 'dire,' saying 16 million people across the country need humanitarian support.
He said aid workers need protection and safety, noting that humanitarian convoys came under fire this month. He said money for food and other assistance is desperately needed, pointing to the UN humanitarian appeal for $3.19 billion for 2025 being only 14% funded.
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