In a televised statement after four days of bloody clashes in the southern province of Sweida and violent Israeli bombardments on Damascus, Al-Shara said that Tel Aviv is once again seeking to transform Syrian territory into a scene of endless chaos, with the intention of dismantling the unit and weakening the ability to move forward in the process of reconstruction and recovery.

The Israeli entity relentlessly uses all means to sow conflict and dispute, ignoring the fact that the Syrians, with their long history, have rejected any form of separation and division, said the Ruler.

Regarding the recent Israeli airstrikes against the headquarters of the Ministry of Defense and the Presidency, the leader believed that having great power does not necessarily mean victory.

He clarified that his country would not be drawn into war as it would fragment the country and disperse efforts and lead the nation into chaos and destruction.

He revealed an American, Arab and Turkish mediation to stop the Israeli escalation, adding that Damascus chose to avoid an open war with the Israeli entity which could destabilize Syria and the entire region.

In turn, at least 350 people, including military, irregular and civilians, were killed in the fighting since last Sunday, in the city of Sweida, head of the homonymous province in southern Syria.

In its most recent assesstment, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported that, out of the total, there are at least 79 Druze fighters, 55 civilians, 189 members of government forces and 18 Bedouin fighters.

abo/mem/fm