News Center — The city of Suwayda in southern Syria witnessed unprecedented waves of violence in July 2025, resulting in the deaths of over a thousand civilians and widespread displacement, amid rising sectarian tensions and mutual accusations between local warring parties.

The UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria announced today, Friday, March 27, that the violent events in the predominantly Druze city of Suwayda in July 2025 included serious violations that may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Commissioner Fionnuala Ní Aoláin stated, in a new report issued by the commission, that the violations committed by members of government forces and armed Druze groups warrant extensive, rapid, effective, and impartial investigations to ensure justice and prevent recurrence.

The UN commission noted in its report that it documented executions, torture, sexual violence, widespread burning of homes, along with other human rights violations, considering that these acts may constitute war crimes and could amount to crimes against humanity if subsequent investigations establish their legal elements.

The commission, which has been monitoring violations in Syria since the conflict began in 2011, explained that the Suwayda events erupted against a backdrop of sectarian tension and developed into three devastating waves of violence, two of which targeted Druze civilians while the third targeted Bedouin civilians.

The report was based on 409 direct testimonies from survivors and witnesses, in addition to field visits to the hardest-hit areas. It noted that investigators, after obtaining permission from the Syrian government to enter, found widespread destruction in Druze villages where tens of thousands of homes, shops, and places of worship had been burned.

The report warned that the city remains deeply divided, noting that approximately 155,000 out of 200,000 displaced persons from mid-July 2025 are still unable to return, most of them from the burned Druze villages, while the majority of Bedouin residents remain forcibly displaced.

The commission's chair described the scale and brutality of the violations in Suwayda as "extremely concerning," stressing the need to hold all perpetrators accountable regardless of their affiliation and to work on rebuilding trust among affected communities through dialogue addressing the roots of the tension.