Sectarian clashes that shook southern Syria this week have killed hundreds of people, including civilians, and drawn in an array of local and international players. Here's a look at the main parties involved.

Members of Syria's Druze community are searching for loved ones and counting their dead after days of clashes in a southern province that left bloodied bodies of civilians on the streets and homes looted.

Syrian minority the Druze were at the centre of a new conflict, following another outbreak of violence. What began as fighting between local Bedouin groups and Druze turned into an international conflict that saw Israel bombing

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.

Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa said on Thursday that protecting Druze citizens and their rights is "our priority", as Israel vowed to destroy Syrian government forces attacking Druze in southern Syria.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the Damascus headquarters served as a command center for deploying regime forces to Suwayda, a southern Syrian region gripped by days of deadly clashes between government troops, Druze militias, and Bedouin groups.