Fighting escalated in Syria Saturday in the predominantly Druze region of Sweida as the government struggled to implement a ceasefire. Machine gun fire and mortar shelling rang out with Reuters reporters witnessing shells land in nearby villages.

U.S. Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack said early Saturday that Israel and Syria had agreed to a cease-fire, following Israel’s intervention this week in fighting between Syrian government forces and

Syria’s interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa has urged Sunni Bedouin tribes to honor a ceasefire aimed at ending deadly clashes with Druze-linked militias

Sectarian clashes escalated in Syria's predominantly Druze region of Sweida on Saturday, with machinegun fire and mortar shelling ringing out after

From the Middle East, we verified footage of the deadly fire in Kut, Iraq, which is now known to have killed at least 61 people, and the aftermath of recent clashes in Syria which also appear to have claimed many lives. BBC Verify uses open-source intelligence, satellite imagery, fact-checking and data analysis to help report complex stories

Syria's leader Ahmad al-Sharaa, foreground, formerly known as Abu Mohammed al-Golani, walks in the presidential palace ahead of his meeting with Walid Ellafi, Libyan minister of state for communication and political affairs, at Damascus, December 28, 2024. AP/Mosa'ab Elshamy

In Syria, violence continued between rival factions even after a ceasefire deal. Government troops withdrew overnight from a region as Israel said it would not allow Syrian forces south of Damascus, extending its attempted control of the area.

Social media showing armed men walking on road in Syria's Sweida region and then firing at a building. Credit: Social Meida.