In southern Syria’s Sweida Province, what some might call a “victory” for one faction over another has come at a horrifying cost to the nation as a whole.
Over the past week, the predominantly Druze region was engulfed in violence between local Druze fighters and Bedouin tribesmen, leaving more than 300 people dead and hundreds wounded. Syrian government forces rushed in to quell the clashes, only to be accused of brutal abuses against Druze civilians and then battered by retaliatory Israeli airstrikes.
The result is a pyrrhic victory for no one. Each life lost in this internecine bloodshed is a wound to Syria itself. The thesis is simple: any apparent “victory” in an ethnic or sectarian conflict within the nation is in truth a collective defeat — one that shreds the country’s social fabric, undermines its sovereignty, and imperils the state’s future.
The recent carnage in Sweida was not an isolated incident, but part of a disturbing pattern of sectarian strife haunting post-war Syria. In March, sectarian massacres in the coastal northwest of the country claimed the lives of some 1,500 mostly Alawite civilians. In June, a bombing struck a Christian church, killing dozens. Now in July, Druze communities have been targeted in a flare-up of communal violence that observers say “poses a serious threat to civil peace and the fabric of national unity”.
Syria today remains deeply fractured along ethnic and sectarian lines, its people’s trust in each other gravely weakened by years of war. Far from delivering security or justice, turning to armed confrontation “deepens existing divisions and escalates instability,” as the Syrian Democratic Council warned amid the Sweida crisis. In such a climate, any short-term upper hand that one group gains over another comes at the price of national cohesion. It sows seeds of resentment and grief that will linger for generations, ensuring that communities feel more estranged and fearful rather than reconciled.
As one Druze resident of Sweida put it after losing two cousins, “I would rather die than be ruled by [them]. At least I would die with dignity.” This poignant despair underscores how sectarian violence shatters citizens’ faith that they have a place in the shared nation. When the bonds between Syria’s diverse communities are torn, the entire homeland bleeds.
If victory through fragmentation is a mirage, what is the real path forward for Syria? The answer lies in restoring national cohesion on the principles of equal citizenship, the rule of law, and social justice. Only by affirming that every Syrian — Druze, Alawite, Sunni, Christian, Kurd or otherwise — is an equal stakeholder in the country’s future can Syria heal the wounds of war.
As analyst Salam Kawakibi observes, after decades of deliberate divide-and-rule policies, “building national unity… requires the establishment of the principles of citizenship, participation, and integration into institutions that represent everyone without discrimination.” In practice, this means democratic and inclusive governance where minorities are not merely protected by the state but are part of the state.
Interim President Ahmed Al-Sharaa himself, in the wake of the Sweida violence, acknowledged that Syria’s Druze are “a fundamental part of the fabric of this nation” and must have their rights and safety guaranteed under the state’s protection. Such rhetoric now needs to be backed by concrete action.
The rule of law is paramount. All armed actors — whether official security forces, local militias, or remnants of extremist groups — must be held accountable under a single national legal framework. There can be no durable peace if some combatants feel above the law or if communities feel that “lawless groups” can attack them with impunity.
Justice, including transitional justice for past atrocities, is not a luxury but a necessity for reconciliation. The United Nations has urged Syria’s interim authorities to ensure accountability for the documented “widespread rights violations” in these recent clashes, from kidnappings to summary executions. A credible process to punish those crimes and compensate victims would send a powerful message that no Syrian is outside the protection of justice and that the state stands above sectarian grudges.
Equal citizenship and social justice must guide Syria’s recovery. This entails dismantling sectarian rhetoric and policies. As one Syrian Kurdish Party implored, the country’s leaders must “move away from the discourse of majority and minorities, and [the] language of incitement and hatred” that only inflames division. Instead, the language of common citizenship and mutual respect should be the norm.
Practically, equal citizenship means the proportional inclusion of all groups in state institutions (the Army, police, and administration) and fair access to resources and jobs across all provinces. It also means addressing the legitimate grievances of marginalised areas with social justice initiatives — economic development, infrastructure, and services — so that no community feels left behind or forced to fend for itself. Without such good-faith efforts to improve daily life and guarantee equal rights, calls for revenge will continue to echo on all sides.
Crucially, national unity must be rooted in pluralism and democracy rather than enforced by fear. A coalition of Syria’s democratic forces has stressed that “a new Syria cannot be built through internal warfare. It can only emerge through unity, rooted in pluralism, justice, and democracy.”
In concrete terms, this could involve decentralisation or local self-administration arrangements that give minority regions like Sweida a voice in how they are governed within an overarching sovereign Syria. It means empowering civil society and community leaders who advocate dialogue over domination. The recent decision to let Druze elders help handle security in Sweida, for instance, might point toward more community-based trust-building (though it came after much bloodshed).
Whatever the mechanisms, the end goal should be that every Syrian feels that their identity is respected and their rights secured by the state, obviating any perceived need to take up arms along communal lines.
The writer is a senior adviser to the Grand Mufti of Egypt.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 24 July, 2025 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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