Israel says it is intervening to protect Syria’s Druze residents who have strong ties to Israel’s Druze community. Damascus called the attack a violation of sovereignty. Photo: Louai Beshara/AFP/Getty Images DUBAI—As Bashar al-Assad’s regime in ...

The Wednesday airstrikes of Israel in Syria have put the Druze community at the epicentre of the conflict with both contries vowing to protect this minority community.

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

Israel launched airstrikes in Damascus on Wednesday, saying it aimed to protect Syrian Druze, a part of a minority that also has followers in Lebanon and Israel.

Clashes that shook southern Syria this week have killed hundreds of people, including civilians, and drawn in an array of both local and international players, harking back to the dynamics of the country's nearly 14-year civil war.

Why did Israel stand up for the Druze in Syria? Russia benefits from Israeli intervention, because there are no former terrorists. The observer writes about the current situation in the Middle East Pravda.

Israeli officials react to the ongoing violence in Syria's Sweida between regime forces and the local Druze community. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged Israeli Druze citizens not to cross the border amid ongoing clashes in Sweida in southern Syria on Wednesday afternoon.