Al Sharaa Slams Israel for Strikes, Vows to Protect Druze Citizens After Massacring Them

Syria’s acting president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, declared that the safety and rights of Druze citizens remain a top priority for his government, following Israeli airstrikes and rising tensions in the south, launched in order to protect Syria’s Druze minority from relentless assaults at the hands of Syrian Islamic forces.

Al Sharaa’s remarks came after Jerusalem announced it would dismantle any Syrian regime forces threatening the Druze population near the Israeli border.

In a video message released early Thursday, Sharaa addressed the Druze community directly after the IDF struck multiple sites in Damascus the day before. “We reject any attempt to drag you into hands of an external party,” he stated.

Sharaa, speaking with defiance, said that Syria was not afraid of conflict. “We are not among those who fear the war. We have spent our lives facing challenges and defending our people, but we have put the interests of the Syrians before chaos and destruction,” he said, taking aim at Israel.

He went on to claim that Israel had launched an expansive assault targeting both civilian infrastructure and government positions.

According to Sharaa, the situation was on the verge of spiraling into a much wider conflict. He credited American, Arab, and Turkish efforts for stepping in just in time: “This led to a significant complication of the situation and pushed matters to a large-scale escalation, except for the effective intervention of American, Arab, and Turkish mediation, which saved the region from an unknown fate.”