This week, Druse fighters joined the push to topple the Assad regime, launching an offensive in the southwest and clashing with government forces, according to media reports.
There are more than one million Druse across the Middle East, mostly in Syria and Lebanon, with some also in Jordan and Israel.
Islamic StateThe Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, better known as ISIS, seized vast stretches of territory in Syria and Iraq in 2014, establishing a brutal caliphate before it was beaten back by a U.S.-led coalition.
Lately, there have been signs of the group’s resurgence in Syria amid wider instability in the region.
The Pentagon warned in July that Islamic State attacks in Syria and Iraq were on track to double compared with the previous year.
Persons:
Assad, Carlotta Gall Christiaan Triebert, Ben Hubbard, Riley Mellen, Neil MacFarquhar, Farnaz Fassihi, Vivian Yee, Samuel Granados, Matthew Mpoke Bigg, Raja Abdulrahim, Adam Rasgon, Ephrat Livni, Thomas Fuller
Organizations:
Southern, Islamic, ISIS, Pentagon, Syrian, Human Rights
Locations:
Sweida, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, Islamic State, Iraq, U.S, Homs, Syrian