Hikmat al-Hijri, the spiritual leader of the Druze community in Suwayda (southern Syria), issued a statement on Friday, July 10, marking the first anniversary of the July 2025 events in the governorate.
He commemorated the victims, reviewed the security, political, and social developments over the past year from his perspective, and addressed messages to Suwayda residents, international bodies, and several regional parties.
Al-Hijri began his statement by offering prayers for those killed in the July 2025 events and wishing the injured a speedy recovery. He described what happened a year earlier as an “ordeal” that, in his words, revealed the true positions of the parties involved in Suwayda at the time.
He said the July events would remain in the collective memory as a painful chapter in the governorate’s history. From his perspective, they reshaped relations with different parties and distinguished “the truthful from the liars, and friends from enemies,” according to the statement.
He also said the events restored Suwayda’s residents to what he described as “their rightful place in history,” while reaffirming their commitment to what he called the choice of freedom and belonging.
Al-Hijri discussed what he described as a period of institution-building, saying work was underway to establish institutions across different sectors to uphold the law and ensure justice within the local community.
He said these bodies would, in his view, form the first building blocks of future democratic institutions, calling on Suwayda residents to support them and contribute to their success.
He added that the current period represented a transitional phase requiring patience and collective work to achieve what he described as freedom, security, and stability.
Accusations Against the Government
The statement criticized the security situation, with al-Hijri accusing the Syrian government of committing violations against residents. He alleged that attempts to kill people and bring about demographic change were continuing, along with abductions and restrictions imposed on the population.
Hatem al-Naasan, head of the National Investigation Committee into the Suwayda events, previously said the competent judicial authorities were continuing to take the necessary legal measures. These included referring defendants to public trials based on the committee’s findings and recommendations, in accordance with the law and the principles of justice and the rule of law.
According to a statement by al-Naasan published by the Syrian Ministry of Justice on July 3, the step formed part of the committee’s continued investigation into violations that accompanied the events in the governorate in mid-July 2025.
Al-Hijri also addressed the suspension of schools and examinations and the interruption of judicial work, describing these measures as part of a policy targeting the local community.
He also referred to an incident he said occurred on Thursday, accusing the government of attempting to target civilians with car bombs. He added that residents of the area had managed to thwart the alleged attempt.
Call to Preserve the Social Fabric
In another part of the statement, al-Hijri called for preserving the unity of the local community. He said anyone who committed an offense or violation “represents only himself,” and that responsibility should remain individual rather than being attributed to families or social groups.
He said Suwayda residents had managed to maintain their cohesion despite what he described as difficult circumstances, calling for continued cooperation and solidarity during the next stage.
He also thanked United Nations bodies whose decisions, he said, had helped alleviate residents’ suffering. He thanked Israel and its government as well, saying it had intervened to prevent what he described as “genocide” during the July 2025 events.
Al-Hijri also saluted the fighters who, he said, continued to defend the area. He reaffirmed commitment to what he described as the choice of freedom and the construction of a future based on institutions and the rule of law.
At the end of his statement, al-Hijri thanked members of Druze communities abroad, praising their role in bringing what happened in Suwayda to the attention of international public opinion.
What Happened in Suwayda?
The Suwayda crisis reached its peak in July 2025, when the Syrian army attempted to enter the city, saying it sought to end clashes between members of the Druze community, who constitute the majority of the governorate’s population, and Bedouin residents.
The government intervention was accompanied by violations against the city’s Druze residents, leading the clashes to spread. Israel subsequently became involved, having repeatedly claimed that it would protect Syria’s Druze community because of kinship ties. The situation later escalated into Israeli strikes on the capital, Damascus, as well as attacks on army personnel who had entered central Suwayda.
The Israeli strikes led Syrian government forces to withdraw from Suwayda city and deploy in the western countryside, where they took control of more than 30 villages.
The withdrawal did not end the crisis. Instead, it became more complicated after local factions committed violations against Bedouin residents in acts of retaliation, prompting tribal mobilizations in support of Suwayda’s Bedouin tribes. Clashes and violations by both sides therefore continued.
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