Washington calls on Damascus to stop massacres and hold those responsible accountable

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called on the transitional government in Syria to "take urgent action" to stop what he described as "massacres and gross violations" in the south of the country, warning that the continued violence threatens Syria's future.

In an official statement, Rubio said that Washington had been "intensively engaged over the past three days with Israel, Jordan, and the authorities in Damascus to address the horrific and dangerous developments taking place in southern Syria."

He added, "The Syrian authorities must immediately stop the rape and killing of innocent people that have occurred and continue to occur," stressing that "impunity is no longer acceptable, and that all those proven to be involved, including elements within the regime, must be held accountable."

The US Secretary of State emphasized that "if Damascus is serious about building a Syria free of ISIS and Iranian influence, it must use its security forces to prevent the entry of extremist jihadist groups into the region and stop the massacres."

Rubio also called for "an immediate cessation of fighting between Druze and Bedouin groups," emphasizing the need to protect civilians and prevent any further escalation that could worsen the humanitarian situation.

On the ground, a cautious calm prevails in Sweida, with some violations in remote rural areas far from the city center.

Concurrently, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported a heavy deployment of Israeli forces in the Golan Heights Park area near the Mantara Dam, in the central Quneitra countryside.

While precise information about the reasons for or nature of the deployment is currently unavailable, no direct clashes or attacks have been reported in the area, amid a state of anticipation among residents of areas near the demarcation line.

Sh-S

ANHA