Israeli leaders said they launched attacks on Syria this week to protect members of the Druze religious group in the country’s south, amid clashes in the area.

A Syrian Druze woman living in the United Arab Emirates frantically tried to keep in touch with her family in her hometown in southern Syria as clashes raged there over the past days.

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After days of bloodshed in Syria's Druze city of Sweida, survivors emerged on Thursday to collect and bury the scores of dead found across the city. A ceasefire overnight brought an end to ferocious fighting between Druze militia and government forces sent to the city to quell clashes between Druze and Bedouin fighters.

Syria's defense minister has announced a ceasefire just hours after government forces entered a key city in the volatile Sweida province.

Israel has launched strikes against Syrian government forces near the Israeli border to protect the Druze minority, as clashes between armed Druze groups and Bedouin fighters escalate. Israeli officials cited deep connections with Druze citizens as the reason for the intervention,

Hundreds of Druze from Israel pushed across the border in solidarity with their Syrian cousins they feared were under attack. Many then met relatives they had never seen before.