اخبار سوريا اليوم – وطن نيوز
سوريا اليوم – اخبار سوريا عاجل
W6nnews.com ==== وطن === تاريخ النشر – 2026-02-08 13:47:00
Enab Baladi – Muwaffaq Al-Khoja Amid the stagnation surrounding the issue of Suwayda Governorate, southern Syria, academics and activists inside the city are trying to move the stagnant waters that have been standing for months, and reach a solution that will end the crisis that has existed for months, and close the door to the rift between the state and society, setting foundations and controls for both sides of the conflict, with provisions that they see as moderate and suitable for the people of the city and the government alike. On the other hand, observers, inside and outside As-Suwayda, doubt the ability of the owners of these initiatives to find actual solutions, amid the high level of rhetoric presented, and the lack of trust within the governorate, after the events of July, and the mutual violations that accompanied them, in addition to the lack of the proposal of a real guarantor on the ground, other than recommendations, statements and plans, without the ability to implement on the ground. The “Third Current” The most recent of these initiatives, until the moment the report was written, is the “Third Current” initiative, which included academics and intellectuals from the city of Suwayda, who established what they called the “Civil Rescue Authority in Suwayda,” which is a civil body that emerges from society and works for it, as they put it. The 21 signatories to the initiative issued a statement at the beginning of this February, in which they said that the “current” was imposed by the reality of the impasse in Suwayda Governorate, and this is what led them to raise their voice with “boldness and transparency,” based on their moral and historical responsibility towards protecting society and ensuring its stability, dignity, and safety. What are the goals of the initiative? The “Third Movement” identified seven main goals for the “Civil Rescue Committee,” which are: condemning the massacres and demanding accountability and reparation. Holding the authority responsible for the bloody events of July. Suwayda is an integral part of a unified Syria, adopting consensual administrative decentralization. The return of the people to their villages, the release of the kidnapped people, and the compensation of those affected. Protecting students and ensuring the right to education. Neutralizing Suwayda from regional axes and ensuring decent living. Dialogue and civil cooperation are the basis of community work. What is its echo inside Suwayda? One of the founders of the “Third Movement,” residing in Suwayda, told Enab Baladi that there is a good percentage of satisfaction and support in terms of the logic of the proposal, considering that they are putting forward the idea of “centrism” and not siding with one side against another. At the same time, he stressed the government’s recognition of the massacres, reparation for the damage, release of the kidnapped, consideration of the future of the students, and other justified demands. We proposed the initiative to pave the way for those who believe that the solution can only be through negotiation and making some concessions, on the condition that the blood of the martyrs, the freedom of the kidnapped, and compensation and return of the displaced are not compromised. The authority is concerned with opening flexible doors and acknowledging the massacres. One of the founders of the “Third Movement.” On the other hand, journalist and civil society activist Rawad Ballan believes that these academics and activists do not represent the true elites of society, at the Syrian level, as Syrian society, with its various components, is subservient to elites who have power on the ground, as he put it. Therefore, As-Suwayda is part of the system, and the decision there is not in their hands, especially since there is “schizophrenia between them and society,” according to his description, and they do not have the incubator, because they do not constitute a guarantor for what they propose, considering that “there is no honest partner in the authority or its audience.” Journalist and political analyst, Darwish Khalifa, said that the initiatives issued by activists, community activists, and politicians from the people of Suwayda at home and abroad are aimed at saving the governorate from a state of stagnation, moving it from the “operating room” to the recovery stage, and then gradually returning to normal life. However, the Syrian experience over the past years has proven that every major political or societal intractability often requires the presence of an “external guarantor” who guarantees the implementation of any agreement reached, or imposes a minimum level of commitment to its terms, the political analyst added during his talk to Enab Baladi. The language proposed seems closer to a call to establish administrative decentralization, allowing the people of the governorate to manage their local, service, and security affairs within the framework of the state, and thus opening the door to a gradual settlement of the arms file by merging local factions or handing over their weapons to the Syrian Ministry of Defense. On the other hand, he pointed out that the initiative in its final form lacks essential elements that would make it capable of being transformed into a practical path, most notably: the absence of implementation mechanisms, the absence of a time frame, and the absence of a clear vision for dealing with Suwayda as a “political community” and not just a “sectarian component.” Khalifa considered this a fundamental loophole, noting that reducing the province to an identity approach would reproduce the crisis instead of resolving it, and keep it hostage to mutual fear and security guardianship. An attack on the “current” and “free will.” The source from the “third movement” residing in Suwayda, who declined to publish his name for security reasons, explained that the “current” received an attack from what he called “the forces of secession,” in addition to death threats and warnings against exercising the initiative directly or indirectly, and some of the signatories were forced to withdraw. The members of the initiative also faced a fierce media campaign, including betrayal and accusation of “collaborating with Al-Julani” (the Syrian president in the transitional period, Ahmed Al-Sharaa), and this amounted to a “death sentence,” according to what the source told Enab Baladi. Owners of similar initiatives have previously been targeted, as happened with the organizers of the “Free Will” conference in the city of Suwayda, which brought together political activists and aimed, according to what its preparatory committee stated, to form a political body that would regulate administrative and political life in the governorate. The attack occurred on January 20, in which the National Guard forces, affiliated with the spiritual head of the Druze Unitarian sect, Hikmat al-Hijri, were accused. It sparked widespread controversy amid conflicting accounts about the identity of the attackers and the nature of the violations that accompanied the incident. Two local sources in the city, one of whom was present at the conference, and the other familiar with the matter, explained to Enab Baladi at the time that the attack included the “Free Administration” conference, by unknown armed persons, some of whom were wearing “National Guard” uniforms. The attack led to the destruction of property and the beating of some of the attendees, who numbered about 70 people, according to the two sources, who denied that there were any arrests following the attack. The two sources revealed that the session was discussing the political and organizational reality in the city, and the possibility of opening negotiations with the Syrian government, which sparked a state of chaos and resentment among the attackers, due to the violations committed by the Syrian government forces when they entered Suwayda in July 2025. This attack required the issuance of a statement from the governorate, appointed by the Syrian government, and the governor, Mustafa Al-Bakour, said in a statement that what he described as “outlaw gangs in Suwayda, are working to disrupt all solutions, as they fear Stability, because it reveals its history of plunder and mercenary exploitation at the expense of the nation.” He considered that what happened at the conference was not a passing incident, “but rather a new episode in the series of repression and breaking the will of the free people of Suwayda,” as he put it. A rift between the two parties. The city of Suwayda is witnessing a state of estrangement between the parties militarily and socially controlling the city, and the Syrian government. The spiritual head of the Druze community, the Hijri, who is considered the authority for the military and administrative activities that control the affairs of the region, stresses in his speeches autonomy in the governorate, without specifying its nature, hinting at separation from the Syrian state. Al-Hijri blessed the establishment of the “National Guard,” a military body that includes more than 30 local factions, with a sectarian dimension, and which is also responsible for the security file. Administratively, Al-Hijri formed the “Supreme Legal Committee” in Suwayda, whose mission is to manage civil affairs. Lost confidence The journalist, Blanc, said that the climate in the city is almost completely lacking in confidence, and pointed out that the environment will not be able to listen to any initiative with international guarantees except with specific paths. These paths include: equal citizenship, respect for diversity, participation in governance, the formation of an “inclusive” national military institution, a constitution guaranteeing diversity and citizenship, broad powers for local administration and maintaining its security, guaranteeing freedoms and separating religion from the state, official recognition of the massacres, a national apology for them, holding their perpetrators accountable, the withdrawal of government forces from the western and northern countryside, the return of the displaced, the release of detainees and detainees, revealing the fate of the missing, reparation and commemoration. Thirteen months after the fall of the regime, and the accompanying transgressions and violations linked to the dominance of the current one-oriented authority over the joints of governance, it has become necessary to think about the principle of political participation on a large scale, as an entry point to restoring some confidence among the components of Syrian society, establishing stability, creating an attractive environment for investment, and getting the wheel of the economy back in motion. Darwish Khalifa, journalist and political analyst, A Complex Crisis The Suwayda Governorate is experiencing a complex crisis, the features of which began at the beginning of the fall of the regime, as the new administration attempted to integrate the factions within the state, but the process was hampered by the lack of consensus between the parties. The crisis reached its peak in July 2025, when the Syrian army tried to enter the city, under the pretext of resolving clashes that broke out between the Druze component, which constitutes the majority of the governorate, and Bedouin residents. The government intervention was accompanied by violations against the city’s residents, from the Druze community, which led to the outbreak of widespread clashes, and resulted in the entry of Israel into the line, which is constantly threatening to protect the Druze in Syria, claiming the existence of kinship ties. The matter later developed into attacks on the capital, Damascus, in addition to targeting army members who entered the city center. The Israeli strikes led to the Syrian government forces leaving the city of Suwayda and positioning themselves in the western countryside, where they took control of more than 30 villages. On the other hand, the exit did not end the crisis, but rather it became more complicated after the local factions committed violations against the Bedouin population, out of revenge, which led to the emergence of “tribal detachments” to support the Bedouin tribes of Suwayda, and thus, clashes and violations continued on both sides. Internationalization of the issue The complexities of the scene in Suwayda led to the internationalization of the issue, and the entry of international and regional parties, which resulted in a “road map to resolve the crisis in Suwayda Governorate,” through a tripartite Syrian-American-Jordanian statement, on September 16, 2025. The map stipulated a set of measures, including an independent international investigation committee, the deployment of qualified police forces on the Suwayda-Damascus road, the announcement of plans to reconstruct the damaged villages and properties, and the promotion of a “national narrative” that On unity and equality, and criminalizing hate speech and sectarianism through new legislation, with legal support from Washington and Amman. For his part, the source from the “Third Movement” expressed his support for the Damascus-Amman-Washington map, hoping that it would be activated to cut off Israel’s path, so that it does not continue to carry out its “dirty sedition,” as he put it. But the journalist and community activist, Ballan, believes that the keys to any solution path are in the hands of the spiritual head of the Druze community, the Hijri, and therefore it is possible to talk about the “National Guard,” civil society, and other supportive activities. As for the political analyst, Khalifa, he believes that what the country needs today is not an exchange of accusations, but rather a comprehensive national project that reconnects what was cut off between the state and society, and establishes a new social contract that goes beyond the duality of “security and sect,” towards a state of citizenship and rights. This begins by calling for a comprehensive national conference, leading to a broad consensus or the election of a committee to draft a new constitution that takes into account Syrian diversity, and establishes a balanced formula for local authorities in the governorates, in parallel with building a professional national army whose mission is to protect the country’s borders and preserve the unity of Syrian territories, not to manage or control society by the logic of force, according to what Khalifa sees. Related
