Syrian officials and Druze leaders have announced a new ceasefire after days of violent clashes, but Israel has continued its airstrikes after intervening.

Israel has been carrying out strikes on Syria since the fall of the Assad regime last December. This week saw a major escalation, when Israel said it attacked Syria to protect the Druze, an Arab minority at the center of clashes with government loyalists.

"I instructed the IDF to act with force because the Damascus regime sent its army south of the capital and massacred the Druze," Netanyahu said.

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa has said that protecting the country’s Druze citizens and their rights is a priority, as he announced that local leaders will take control of security in the city of Suwayda in a bid to end sectarian violence in the south and in the wake of deadly Israeli strikes in Damascus.

Bedouin groups had fought alongside government forces against the Druze groups. Druze leaders and Syrian government officials reached a ceasefire deal mediated by the United States, Turkey and Arab countries. Under the ceasefire agreement reached on ...

Syria, on Wednesday, strongly condemned Israeli attacks, denouncing the strikes as a “dangerous escalation .” The Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused Israel of pursuing a “deliberate policy” to “inflame tensions, spread chaos and undermine security and stability in Syria”.

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