Hundreds of Druze from Israel pushed across the border in solidarity with their Syrian cousins they feared were under attack. Many then met relatives never seen before.

Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa accused Israel of trying to fracture Syria and promised to protect its Druze minority on Thursday after U.S. intervention to help achieve a truce in fighting between government forces and Druze fighters.

They led the Great Syrian Revolt against French colonial rule, fighting for liberalism, the rule of law, and human rights for all. This religious minority known for its dignity, neutrality, resiliency, and peaceful resistance is now being targeted by Jihadi militias supported by the Syrian regime, with tanks artillery, and heavy weapons.

A stampede at a food distribution site run by an Israeli-backed American organization in the Gaza Strip killed 20 Palestinians on Wednesday.

Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa said on Thursday that protecting Druze citizens and their rights is "our priority", as Israel vowed to destroy Syrian government forces attacking Druze in southern Syria.

One video from a Syrian television channel shows the Ministry of Defense building being hit live on air, forcing the anchor to take cover. Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz shared the footage, saying “the painful blows have begun.

The dayslong fighting threatened to unravel Syria’s postwar political transition and brought in further military intervention by its powerful neighbor Israel.

Dramatic footage has emerged of a Syrian TV presenter fleeing a news studio mid-broadcast after an Israeli airstrike on a building framed in the cityscape behind her was captured live on air. The Israeli army later confirmed it had targeted the Syrian army HQ in Damascus and a military target near the presidential palace.