At least eleven people have been killed in violent clashes in the Damascus suburb of Sahnaya, Syria’s state-run SANA news agency reported on Wednesday, as armed groups launched attacks on both civilians and government security forces.
The violence erupted late Tuesday, when unidentified armed assailants reportedly began firing on civilian and public security vehicles along key roads in the area. According to the SANA report, other gunmen targeted a military checkpoint in Sahnaya city, located just south of the Syrian capital.
Local residents, speaking to the German news agency dpa, described a chaotic and terrifying scene, with machine gun fire and rocket-propelled grenades causing extensive damage to homes and vehicles. “We could hear the gunfire all night—everyone was too afraid to even look outside,” one resident said.
Security forces reportedly pushed into the center of Sahnaya under heavy fire to secure the city’s Druze-majority neighborhoods, as fears of sectarian violence mounted.
The unrest in Sahnaya followed closely on the heels of deadly violence in the nearby town of Jaramana, where at least 17 people were killed on Monday after a controversial audio recording circulated online. The recording, which allegedly featured an insult directed at the Prophet Mohammed, was attributed to a member of the Druze community, sparking intense fighting between Druze residents and other armed groups.
Syria’s Interior Ministry said Tuesday that it was continuing its investigation into the origin of the inflammatory recording. Meanwhile, community leaders from the Druze population in Jaramana issued a statement denying the authenticity of the recording, labeling it a fabrication intended to incite sectarian strife.
The recent violence highlights the growing instability in Syria, where tensions have remained high despite the fall of long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad in December. The country’s new Islamist-led government has pledged unity and inclusiveness, but repeated outbreaks of violence—often along sectarian lines—continue to plague regions across the country.
In March, deadly skirmishes erupted in Syria’s western coastal regions between security forces loyal to the new government and remnants of pro-Assad militias, underscoring the fragile state of peace and the complex web of loyalties still simmering beneath the surface.
As of Wednesday, government forces remain deployed in Sahnaya and Jaramana, with security tightened amid fears of further clashes. There has been no official word yet on whether curfews or additional security measures will be introduced.
