Negotiations underway for prisoner exchange between Syrian government and Suwayda factions

Agence France-Presse, AFP, reported on Tuesday, February 24, citing an unnamed source, that Washington is mediating between the government in Damascus and al-Hijri over a single issue, namely detainees and prisoners.

According to the source, the mediation aims to secure the release of 61 civilians from Suwayda, southern Syria, who are being held in Adra Prison in the Damascus countryside, in exchange for the release by the “National Guard” of 30 members of the Ministries of Defense and Interior.

The “National Guard” is a coalition of several local factions operating in Suwayda province, predominantly Druze in composition, and is considered aligned with al-Hijri.

Previous releases in Sahnaya

In a related context, the Syrian government recently released detainees it had arrested during the events in the towns of Sahnaya and Ashrafiyat Sahnaya in the Damascus countryside, where clashes erupted in April 2025.

The release was mediated by Lebanon’s Progressive Socialist Party, which is close to prominent Druze leader Walid Jumblatt, according to a statement published on the party’s official account.

The local “al-Rased” page reported that those released arrived at the al-Masnaa border crossing with Lebanon.

Sahnaya and Ashrafiyat Sahnaya witnessed armed clashes between groups formerly affiliated with Syrian opposition factions and local groups based in Ashrafiyat Sahnaya in Rif Dimashq province.

The fighting was considered an extension of a similar attack launched by armed groups on the city of Jaramana in the Damascus countryside, which has a Druze majority, after a video circulated on social media containing insults to the Prophet Muhammad. The video was attributed to a Druze cleric, who later denied responsibility.

The Syrian government later reached a ceasefire agreement following a meeting with Druze community leaders from Suwayda province, as well as representatives from Sahnaya and Jaramana in Rif Dimashq.

Secret negotiations

For its part, the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation reported that negotiations are being held under US sponsorship between the government in Damascus and leaders of factions in Suwayda, in an effort to reach a political and security settlement that would end tensions in the province.

According to the report, the talks are based on granting broad security and administrative powers to local authorities in Suwayda, in exchange for some local actors abandoning demands for self rule or any separatist tendencies, while keeping the province under the sovereignty of the central government in Damascus.

A Syrian security source told the broadcaster that the government is seeking to open channels of dialogue with representatives of the Druze community to reduce the influence of religious and political figures who refuse to recognize the legitimacy of the current authority, foremost among them al-Hijri.

The source added that the proposal under discussion includes deploying only internal security forces inside the province, without introducing regular army units, in order to avoid renewed field escalation.

He noted that Damascus does not wish to take practical steps before obtaining guarantees that regional actors will not intervene, in an apparent reference to Israel.

Suwayda’s security director, Suleiman Abdel Baqi, had previously said that the entry of government forces into Suwayda was approaching, and that the objective was “to restore the authority of the law and protect the city, not to break it.”

In a post on Facebook, he pledged that no violations would occur and stressed that “accountability will reach anyone who committed violations from any side, without protection or cover for any corrupt individual.” He added that those who “defended their land, dignity, and homes will not be harmed,” while those who exploited the name of dignity and blood for personal interests would be held accountable.

Researcher Ammar Jello previously told Enab Baladi that Abdel Baqi’s statements are based on political arrangements the government may be making with regional and international actors to reassert Damascus’ control over southern Syria and end what he described as destabilizing Israeli interference from the south. This follows the closure of the northeastern file, which he said had become a key reference point for federalist demands in Syria, whether in the south or along the coast.

A complex crisis in Suwayda

Suwayda province has been experiencing a layered crisis since the early stages of the regime’s fall, when the new administration attempted to integrate armed factions into state institutions. The process stalled due to a lack of consensus among the parties.

The crisis reached its peak in July 2025, when the Syrian army attempted to enter Suwayda city, claiming it sought to contain clashes that had erupted between the Druze community, which forms the majority in the province, and Bedouin residents.

The government intervention was accompanied by violations against Druze residents, triggering widespread clashes and prompting Israeli involvement. Israel has repeatedly signaled its readiness to protect Druze in Syria, citing kinship ties. The situation later escalated to Israeli strikes on the capital, Damascus, in addition to targeting army personnel who had entered the city center.

The Israeli strikes forced Syrian government forces to withdraw from Suwayda city and reposition in the western countryside, where they took control of more than 30 villages.

However, the withdrawal did not end the crisis. Instead, it grew more complicated after local factions committed retaliatory violations against Bedouin residents, leading to tribal mobilizations in support of Bedouin clans in Suwayda. Clashes and violations subsequently continued on both sides.

[Source: Enab Baladi English]