Damascus, Sept 4, (dpa/GNA) – Syrian authorities have arrested several members of the Interior and Defence Ministries for violent abuses, committed during deadly clashes in the southern province of Sweida in July, according to an official investigative commission.
The commission, appointed on July 31 to probe the unrest, has been questioning multiple suspects accused of involvement in the attacks, its spokesman Ammar Ezzeddin told dpa on Wednesday.
He said members of both ministries were interrogated and referred to the judiciary, after being detained on suspicion of carrying out abuses.
The body is also reviewing video footage filmed between July 14 and 17 in and around Sweida, which was widely circulated in the media, and appeared to document violations.
Legal proceedings against the suspects are expected to follow.
Ezzeddin stressed that the Syrian state is committed to prosecuting “all those involved, from all parties and groups” in connection with the recent bloodshed.
The violence erupted on July 13, when clashes broke out between members of the Druze minority and Sunni tribal groups in Sweida, a predominantly Druze province that has largely remained on the margins of Syria’s 13-year conflict.
Government troops were deployed to the area to restore order, but were themselves accused of committing abuses against Druze civilians.
The crisis drew in regional actors, with neighbouring Israel carrying out airstrikes on targets in Syria, which it said were intended to protect the Druze population.
Hundreds of people were killed during the fighting, including Druze residents, armed faction members, Bedouin tribesmen, government soldiers and Arab tribal fighters.
GNA