Armed groups using Suwayda hospital to attack Syrian forces, defense ministry says

By Abdulsalam Fayez and Tarek Chouiref

ISTANBUL (AA) - Syria’s Defense Ministry on Wednesday accused “outlaw armed groups” of occupying the main hospital in the southern Suwayda province and using it as a base to target army forces.

In a statement carried by the state news agency SANA, the ministry said the groups had stationed snipers on the hospital’s rooftops to launch attacks on Syrian army and security forces.

“These outlaw groups are using the national hospital in Suwayda as a launch point for their operations,” the statement said, adding that a significant number of snipers were targeting security forces heavily from the hospital complex.

The ministry said it had repeatedly called for the hospital and its surrounding area to be neutralized and for medical and emergency teams to be allowed access, but had received no response.

It held the armed groups and their backers “fully responsible for what is happening at the national hospital in Suwayda.”

The accusation came despite the announcement of a full ceasefire in Suwayda on Tuesday evening after army and security forces entered the city center to restore stability.

On Sunday, clashes erupted between armed Druze militias and Bedouin groups in Suwayda after both sides reportedly seized vehicles from each other, local sources said.

Syria’s Interior Ministry said that more than 30 people have been killed and nearly 100 others injured in the violence.

Israeli army claims the operations are meant to protect the Druze minority.