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'Corrupt will be held accountable' - Suwayda protesters demand answers over missing relatives in broken prisoner swap deal

"Hundreds gathered outside the Serail building in Suwayda on Sunday to demand information on detainees and protest against the alleged smuggling of three prisoners who were part of a pending exchange deal between the Syrian transitional government in Damascus and the local Druze leadership. Footage from Sunday shows crowds forming, with many chanting slogans including, ‘Whoever protects a corrupt person is just as corrupt’ and ‘We must strike with an iron fist, for whoever cannot be trusted with our honour and blood cannot be trusted with anything.’ The tensions trace back to July 2025, when central government forces and allied Bedouin militias clashed with local Druze factions, resulting in mass abductions on both sides. Under a United States-mediated agreement, a series of mutual prisoner swaps was established to trade captured Damascus security personnel for missing Druze civilians. Addressing the crisis, Jabal Bashan board chairman Judge Shadi Murshid explained that whilst efforts are underway to restore local village services and boost security posts, resolving the fate of the missing remains deeply challenging. "As for the missing persons and the National Guard, new arrangements and a structural framework are being prepared according to modern regulations. Any corrupt individual or anyone proven to have committed treasonous acts will be removed from their position, and if necessary, held accountable." Murshid noted that a newly formed committee is investigating the disappearances of over 105 individuals. However, the Damascus transitional government refuses to acknowledge their existence, forcing locals to rely on testimonies from previously released prisoners to verify who is being held. Furthermore, 65 unidentified bodies require costly DNA testing that the International Committee of the Red Cross currently lacks the resources to provide. A field commander in the National Guard, Nasser Obeid, called for the dismissal of the “security office and the accountability of its officials if mistakes are proven, and their removal from their positions,” urging the appointment of “honest individuals who have the trust of the locals, rather than making a unilateral decision.” The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported that the demonstration comes “after more than ten months since the abduction and disappearance of dozens of civilians from Suwayda province, amid widespread anger and frustration among locals who say their children remain missing to this day.” Conversely, the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported on Friday that “internal security forces in Suwayda province managed to free three individuals who were being held by unlawful groups inside the city, as part of ongoing efforts to enhance security, stability, and protect citizens.” The province remains highly volatile after the intense clashes last year resulted in nearly 1,900 deaths. The ongoing unrest follows the historic December 2024 collapse of the Ba'athist regime, which saw the current transitional government take power in Damascus under interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa."