SWEIDA: An aid convoy entered the city of Sweida in southern Syria via the main highway from Damascus on Thursday, for the first time since a major outbreak of sectarian violence last month shook the country’s fragile recovery from nearly 14 years of civil war.
Clashes broke out in mid-July between government forces and local Bedouin tribesmen on one side, and fighters from the country’s Druze minority on the other. Hundreds were killed and tens of thousands displaced, and allegations have surfaced of government fighters executing Druze civilians and looting and burning houses.
Though the fighting has largely calmed down, government forces have surrounded the southern city. The Druze have said that little aid is going in, calling it a siege.
Sweida’s provincial government said in a statement Thursday that a convoy had arrived in the city via the main highway, carrying UN aid intended “to meet the residents’ basic needs.” State-run Al-Ikhbariya TV said the convoy included 18 trucks carrying food baskets, cleaning supplies and solar-powered lamps.
The main highway had been closed since the fighting, with the aid convoys that did go in taking a circuitous route by way of Daraa province, which is south of Sweida.
UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Syria Adam Abdelmoula in a statement last week after visiting Sweida said that the health system was “under severe strain,” with hospitals and clinics “facing acute shortages of essential medications, including insulin, dialysis supplies, and cancer treatments.”
The statement added that prices for basic goods had soared, with families waiting in long lines for fuel and other essentials.
“Humanitarian assistance alone cannot resolve these challenges,” it said. “Restoring safe and reliable flows of commercial goods is critical to stabilizing the situation and preventing further deterioration.”
Main highway from Damascus to Sweida reopens to aid convoys weeks after violence
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Main highway from Damascus to Sweida reopens to aid convoys weeks after violence
- An aid convoy has entered the city of Sweida in southern Syria via the main highway from Damascus for the first since a major outbreak of sectarian violence last month that shook the country
- Though the fighting has largely calmed down, government forces have surrounded the southern city. The Druze have said that little aid is going in, calling it a siege
Tunisian police clash with youths in Kairouan after man’s death
- Tunisia President Kais Saied shut down parliament and began ruling by decree in 2021 in what he called a move to root out rampant corruption and mismanagement, but which the opposition called a coup
TUNIS: Clashes erupted for a second night on Saturday between police and youths in the central Tunisian city of Kairouan after a man died following a police chase, according to his family, fueling authorities’ fears that protests could spread across the country. As Tunisia prepares to mark the January anniversary of the 2011 revolution, which sparked the Arab Spring uprising, tensions have risen amid protests, and a powerful UGTT union call for a nationwide strike next month. Thousands have been protesting for weeks in the southern city of Gabes, demanding the closure of a chemical plant on environmental grounds.
Witnesses said demonstrators in Kairouan threw stones, petrol bombs and flares, and blocked streets by burning tires, prompting police to disperse crowds with tear gas.
The family said the man, riding a motorcycle without a license, was chased by police, beaten, and taken to a hospital. He later fled and died on Friday from a head injury.
The government was not immediately available to comment. Relatives of the deceased said they will not remain silent and will spark major protests if those responsible are not held accountable.
In a bid to defuse tensions, Kairouan’s governor visited the family on Saturday evening and pledged to open an investigation to determine the circumstances of the death and establish accountability, witnesses said.
Tunisia President Kais Saied shut down parliament and began ruling by decree in 2021 in what he called a move to root out rampant corruption and mismanagement, but which the opposition called a coup.
Rights groups accuse Saied of using the judiciary and police to stifle criticism, something that Saied denies.
