The tension and fighting that has raged for a fifth day in southern Syria around the city of Sweida continues to cause concern in the West as it appears that the country’s transitional government under Al Sharaa has made the decision to go ahead with its plans with the Druze regardless of the strikes and planning for further forceful response from Israel.

The Al Sharaa side and senior military and diplomatic officials from the Israeli side held talks last Monday, and for the first time in person, regarding the next joint steps in the region. The paradox on the Syrian side is that while it has long sought through different – in the majority of cases – powerful channels this communication, it has decided to go ahead with the deployment of the country’s new national army in the south and put the Druze, for whom the Israel has been hitting targets before since last March, making it clear that what it says about protecting this particular minority is only “logos“. The strikes in the Syrian south and also in the capital Damascus last week were another clear message to Al Sharaa. Syria’s interim president “received” it and called for the immediate withdrawal of the army from the site but did not put aside the plan to exterminate the Druze at all…

Immediately after the retreat of the Syria troops not only from the outskirts of Sweida but also from the center of the city their place was taken with memorable speed by thousands of others… In particular, the withdrawal of the Syrian army was accompanied by an announcement by the country’s Ministry of Defense and minutes later by an announcement by the spokesman of the Bedouin in the area who called on thousands of men to go by whatever means they have to the site and “complete God’s work.” Tens of thousands of heavily armed men are now in the area and the ferocity with which they are besieging the area house to house shows that they have no intention of stopping until they complete their gruesome work. In the face of this move even determined Israel seemed to be taken by surprise and Tel Aviv gave some hours of leeway to these groups who are described by western media as “naughty” but far from such they seem to be in the fields to withdraw…

By the early hours of Saturday morning, although Israel’s informal ultimatum had passed, nothing had happened, and local media are reporting that the death toll is more than 500 and approaching 2000 injured. Tel Aviv should be taken for granted that it will move forcefully over the next two days and the question remains whether it will operate only from the air with its fighters and drones or whether it will order some of the thousands of troops it has assembled on its border with Syria to advance to positions near this particular Druze stronghold.

Diplomatic sources from Tel Aviv also noted that there may be units on the ground and operating independently, but in no case will the Syrian President be uninvolved in the final “account“. Israel claims, and is probably right, that the President of Syria has sent a message of withdrawal to the military with a plan in hand to advance groups that cannot be “charged” to him. But for Israel whose borders are only 50 kilometers from the point Syria and what is taking place in the region is very important mainly for the future and in no way is left to chance.

The Israeli Defense Ministry stressed late Friday night, moreover, that for the country not only the perpetrator of a hostile act is of value, but also the initiator and instigator of the “dirty work”. Through this particular crisis, it is not unlikely that Tel Aviv will place Al Sharaa on the list of “undesirables and expendables” and that the situation in the long-suffering country will once again change radically. A change that will have a very different context from the one that has existed since the fall of the “dictatorship of silence” and the fall of the Assad regime seven months ago.