Unidentified gunmen attacked a bus on the 110 highway in southwestern Syria, killing at least two civilians and wounding another 11. The bus was traveling from Suwayda Governorate to the capital city of Damascus, and the attack took place near the Marjana station, just inside the Rif Dimashq Governorate.
Suwayda was the site of major violence in July, with the government forces participating in summary execution of the Druze minority and closing all highways to and from the governorate for some time. The government declared the 110 highway safe and reopened it in late August.
One of the Druze factions, the National Guard Forces, issued a statement faulting the government for the attack, blaming the attack on “criminal gangs” affiliated with the national government. No group has yet claimed credit for this attack.
Violence has slowed in Suwayda since the July massacres, but never fully stopped. Over the weekend, government forces shelled areas near the village of al-Majdal, and Sahwet al-Khudr. There are growing pushes from some factions of the Druze to establish full autonomy in Suwayda, while the central government insists no federalism will be permitted.
This is a problem across multiple areas in Syria, while the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) Islamist faction having taking power in December, and still trying to impose a strong central government across Syria, with myriad ethnic and religious minorities, many of whom have a traditional of autonomy.
This has led to tensions and at times outright clashes, as the government insists on a monopoly on arms in the country, but many groups across the national retain substantial ability to fight and, given the amount of incidents still occurring, are reluctant to disarm unilaterally.
