Collected photo

JERUSALEM, July 16, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Israel's Defence Minister Israel Katz on Wednesday warned Syria that it would hit the country hard after deadly clashes that saw government forces align with Bedouin fighters in clashes against the Druze.

"The signals to Damascus are over -- now come the painful blows," he said, promising that the Israeli military would "operate forcefully" in Syria's southern Sweida region "to eliminate the forces that attacked the Druze until their full withdrawal".