Syrian tensions amid sectarian violence in Suweida, Syria. While Syria welcomed US efforts, Israel hasn't commented.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a U.K.-based war monitor, said the clashes started after members of a Bedouin tribe in Sweida province set up a checkpoint where they attacked and robbed a Druze man, leading to tit-for-tat attacks and kidnappings between the tribes and Druze armed groups.

Israel intervened in a situation involving the Druze, a religious minority whose members live in Syria and Israel.

Israel says it is intervening to protect Syria’s Druze residents who have strong ties to Israel’s Druze community. Damascus called the attack a violation of sovereignty.

The violence underscores the government’s challenge to assert nationwide control as ethnic and religious tensions simmer after the end of the civil war.