The once invincible Sweida in southern Syria – the centre of an uprising against French colonial rule a century ago – was counting its dead this week, after days of fighting.
A fragile ceasefire appeared to be holding yesterday, the second day without clashes in the city in the past week.
On Monday, Health Ministry teams were counting the dead and taking bodies to hospitals, where mortuaries were already full after the violence.
Dr Khaldoun, a Druze surgeon at the Sweida National Hospital, told The National that Syrian military and Interior Ministry forces who arrived in the city last week “supposedly to stop clashes and spread security, turned out to be monsters”.
More than 1,120 people were killed in the fighting, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. It said this included almost 300 civilians, many who had been summarily executed.
US diplomatic pressure on Syrian authorities helped bring a halt to the violence on Sunday. Israel said it launched air strikes on Damascus last week in defence of the Druze.
But the area, the heartland of the Druze minority – a sect dating back 1,000 years – remains under siege by the authorities.
Damascus said Druze militias killed hundreds of Sunnis in Sweida during the clashes, which were sparked by abductions in the city. Druze militias and Bedouin fighters were involved in the violence, before Syrian security troops arrived in the area.
Local officials said women were among those killed by snipers and other gunmen during assaults.
Dr Khaldoun said “medical teams were shot dead while trying to save people”.
He said the number of people who died receiving treatment at the hospital, as well as the number of bodies brought there, had reached 500.
Jiryes Al Ishaq, a Christian who lived on a farmland on the western outskirts of Sweida, said he fled the clashes and took shelter in the Greek Orthodox parish in the centre of the city.
“Pillage has been widespread but I don’t know what happened to my land,” he said.
“We are provided for at the parish, because the authorities have vowed not to harm [the compound], but the rest of the city is devastated.”
He referred to unconfirmed reports that government-allied militants had killed a Christian family of a dozen members in Sweida. The Syrian government has said that such killings would result in prosecutions.
Fighting in Sweida – in pictures
Sweida is home to 270,000 Druze, who comprise most members of the sect left in Syria after waves of emigration. There are an estimated one million Druze worldwide, mainly in Syria, Lebanon and Israel, plus the diaspora.
From 1925 to 1927, the Druze, led by Sultan Basha Al Atrash, mounted an uprising against French rule. That failed but it was instrumental in projecting the image of the Druze as being Syrians first in a predominantly Sunni country.
Sultan Al Atrash became a figure in the narrative of Arab nationalists across the Middle East. Bedouin tribes joined him in the uprising. Sunni merchants in Damascus financed the Druze armed struggle against the French, as thousands of Druze fighters were killed by superior firepower.
Sultan Al Atrash died in 1982. However, one of his daughters, Muntaha, led peaceful resistance in Sweida when the March protest movement broke out in Syria in 2011.
In the last 15 months of former president Bashar Al Assad’s rule – before he was ousted last December – Sweida renewed the civil disobedience movement, demanding the removal of
the regime. Among its leaders was Hikmat Al Hijri, the most senior of a triumvirate comprising the Druze spiritual leadership.
Suhail Thebian, a prominent Druze civil figure, had opposed the increased arming of the Druze under Mr Al Hijri, after the Assad regime fell.
But he said the community has had no option but to resist government forces, although the cost has been high.
“Sweida has become a disaster zone,” Mr Thebian said. “There is nothing more I can tell you. I have survived, for now”.
Mr Al Hijri had resisted attempts by the new Syrian government to control Sweida, saying new security forces should be drawn from residents of the province. He described the government as extremists and undemocratic.
So, when clashes began in Sweida last week between Druze and Bedouin fighters, Mr Al Hijri refused to have government forces in the city.
This set the scene for operation in which the government recruited Sunni auxiliaries from Sweida and elsewhere.
Even Druze who have been critical of Mr Al Hijri’s handling of the crisis said the violence in the city has raised concerns about the authorities.
“They have cut the internet to make it difficult to know and document the size of the atrocities they committed,” said Nawaf, another Druze doctor.
The city and nearby villages “have been devastated”, an engineer in Sweida said. “We can’t even reach them,” he added.
“Bodies are still lying in open fields. There are no vehicles, no gasoline. I went to the hospital, but it can’t receive anyone as it is now out of service.”
The Lowdown
Kesari
Rating: 2.5/5 stars
Produced by: Dharma Productions, Azure Entertainment
Directed by: Anubhav Singh
Cast: Akshay Kumar, Parineeti Chopra
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Titanium Escrow profile
Started: December 2016
Founder: Ibrahim Kamalmaz
Based: UAE
Sector: Finance / legal
Size: 3 employees, pre-revenue
Stage: Early stage
Investors: Founder's friends and Family
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
THE LIGHT
Director: Tom Tykwer
Starring: Tala Al Deen, Nicolette Krebitz, Lars Eidinger
Rating: 3/5
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl
Power: 153hp at 6,000rpm
Torque: 200Nm at 4,000rpm
Transmission: 6-speed auto
Price: Dh99,000
On sale: now
GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
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How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
Pathaan
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Settlers
Director: Louis Theroux
Starring: Daniella Weiss, Ari Abramowitz
Rating: 5/5
What are NFTs?
Are non-fungible tokens a currency, asset, or a licensing instrument? Arnab Das, global market strategist EMEA at Invesco, says they are mix of all of three.
You can buy, hold and use NFTs just like US dollars and Bitcoins. “They can appreciate in value and even produce cash flows.”
However, while money is fungible, NFTs are not. “One Bitcoin, dollar, euro or dirham is largely indistinguishable from the next. Nothing ties a dollar bill to a particular owner, for example. Nor does it tie you to to any goods, services or assets you bought with that currency. In contrast, NFTs confer specific ownership,” Mr Das says.
This makes NFTs closer to a piece of intellectual property such as a work of art or licence, as you can claim royalties or profit by exchanging it at a higher value later, Mr Das says. “They could provide a sustainable income stream.”
This income will depend on future demand and use, which makes NFTs difficult to value. “However, there is a credible use case for many forms of intellectual property, notably art, songs, videos,” Mr Das says.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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A cryptocurrency primer for beginners
Cryptocurrency Investing for Dummies – by Kiana Danial
There are several primers for investing in cryptocurrencies available online, including e-books written by people whose credentials fall apart on the second page of your preferred search engine.
Ms Danial is a finance coach and former currency analyst who writes for Nasdaq. Her broad-strokes primer (2019) breaks down investing in cryptocurrency into baby steps, while explaining the terms and technologies involved.
Although cryptocurrencies are a fast evolving world, this book offers a good insight into the game as well as providing some basic tips, strategies and warning signs.
Begin your cryptocurrency journey here.
Available at Magrudy’s , Dh104
Porsche Macan T: The Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 265hp from 5,000-6,500rpm
Torque: 400Nm from 1,800-4,500rpm
Transmission: 7-speed dual-clutch auto
Speed: 0-100kph in 6.2sec
Top speed: 232kph
Fuel consumption: 10.7L/100km
On sale: May or June
Price: From Dh259,900
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
