By Eyad Kourdi, Catherine Nicholls, Eugenia Yosef, Mostafa Salem and Mohammed Tawfeeq

(CNN) — Israel carried out a series of powerful strikes on the Syrian capital Damascus Wednesday, escalating a campaign it says is in support of an Arab minority group involved in deadly clashes with Syrian government forces.

At least three people were killed and 34 others were injured in the attacks, the Syrian health ministry told CNN.

Israel has stepped up its campaign despite pressure from the US, which has made moves to end Syria’s international isolation.

Syria has strongly condemned Israel for striking several government buildings in Damascus on Wednesday, calling the attacks on targets including its Ministry of Defense a “dangerous escalation.”

One video from a Syrian television channel showed the Ministry of Defense building being hit live on air during the latest strikes, forcing the anchor to take cover.

“This blatant attack, which comes within the context of a systematic policy pursued by the Israeli entity to ignite tension, create chaos, and undermine security and safety in Syria,” the country’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.

Syria said it will “reserve its full legitimate rights to defend its land and people by all means guaranteed by international law,” the statement added.

The US secretary of state Marco Rubio on Wednesday said the Trump administration has engaged with all parties of the conflict to end the clashes in Syria.

“We have agreed on specific steps that will bring this troubling and horrifying situation to an end tonight. This will require all parties to deliver on the commitments they have made and this is what we fully expect them to do,” Rubio said on X.

Rubio also described the latest tension between Israel and Syria as a “misunderstanding” saying, “we have been engaging with them all morning long,” in a video Rubio shared on X showing him in the Oval Office with US President Donald Trump.

The Syrian government said on Wednesday night local time its army forces started withdrawing from Suwayda, according to the country’s state-run SANA news agency.

“The withdrawal of Syrian Arab Army forces from Suwayda has begun, in implementation of the agreement reached between the Syrian state and the Druze religious leadership in the city, following the army’s completion of its mission to pursue outlawed groups,” SANA said.

Video on Syrian TV purportedly showed a convoy of military vehicles driving out of Suwayda city.

The Syrian government meanwhile announced a new ceasefire with the Druze but it is unclear whether it will come into force amid splits among the group.

At least 169 people have been killed, and 200 others injured during several days of clashes, the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) said on Wednesday.

The escalating violence included extrajudicial killings, exchanges of artillery, and airstrikes by Israeli forces, the monitoring group said.

CNN cannot independently verify SNHR’s figures and is reaching out to the Syrian government for comment regarding the death toll.

Earlier on Wednesday, Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz shared the footage of the attacks on Damascus, saying “the painful blows have begun.”

In a press briefing held by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), a military official confirmed Israel had targeted the ministry and an area near the presidential palace.

Israel, which has been carrying out strikes on Syria since the fall of the Assad regime last December, says it is attacking Syria to protect the Druze, an Arab minority at the center of clashes with government loyalists.

However, another incentive behind Israel’s decision to strike could be related to its opposition of the current Syrian government.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has previously referred to the new leaders of the country as an “extremist Islamic regime” and a threat to the state of Israel.

Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said Wednesday that his country wants to “maintain the status quo in southern Syria - an area near our border - and prevent the emergence of threats against Israel in that space.”

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres expressed alarm over the continued escalation of violence in Suwayda in a statement on Wednesday. He condemned all violence against civilians, including reports of arbitrary killings and acts that exacerbate sectarian tensions in the country.

Guterres also condemned “Israel’s escalatory airstrikes on Suwayda, Daraa and in the center of Damascus,” calling for “an immediate cessation of all violations of Syria’s sovereignty.”

Several countries in the region, including Turkey, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar, condemned the Israeli strikes in Syria.

Turkey, the most steadfast supporter of the new Syrian administration, called Israel’s strikes, “an act of sabotage against Syria’s efforts to secure peace, stability, and security,” the Turkish foreign ministry said in a statement.

Iran – which fought its own war with Israel last month – condemned the Israeli strikes on Syria as “unhinged aggression.” Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi vowed that Iran “will continue supporting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria, and will always stand with the Syrian people.

The Saudi foreign ministry said in a statement on Wednesday that “The Kingdom condemned the continued blatant Israeli attacks on Syrian territory, interference in its internal affairs, and destabilization of its security and stability in flagrant violation of international law.”

Antonio Costa, president of the European Council, said he is “very concerned by the Israeli strikes on Damascus,” calling for respect for Syria’s sovereignty in a post on X on Wednesday.

The Norwegian foreign minister, Espen Barth Eide, also said he is “Deeply concerned about recent Israeli airstrikes and rising domestic tensions,” in a post on X on Wednesday.

Talks of a ceasefire

The Druze, an Arab sect of roughly one million people who primarily live in Syria, Lebanon and Israel, practice an offshoot of Islam which permits no converts – either to or from the religion – and no intermarriage. The Druze are made up of a network of groups with multiple figureheads.

Syria’s new President Ahmed al-Sharaa has pledged inclusion and vowed to protect all of Syria’s diverse communities, but Sunni extremist forces loyal to him have continued to violently confront religious minorities.

Violence broke out over the weekend between Druze forces and Bedouin tribes in the southern Syrian city of Suwayda, prompting an intervention by the Syrian government.

The Syrian government claimed a new ceasefire agreement was reached on Wednesday, but a key figure from the religious minority group denied that a truce was reached. An earlier ceasefire collapsed within hours.

A statement published by the Syrian government said that, under the new ceasefire, there will be a complete halt to military operations, a monitoring committee will be formed with the Druze leaders and members of the community will be leading security in the province.

A Druze spiritual leader representing one of the factions in Suwayda, Youssef Jarbou, confirmed an agreement was reached for a “complete and immediate halt to all military operations and de-escalation from all sides, with the army returning to its barracks.”

However, Hikmat al-Hijri - a prominent Druze figure who had asked for international protection on Wednesday - rejected the ceasefire, calling on his supporters to continue fighting.

A ‘dire’ situation

Clashes continued into Wednesday and Fadi Hamdan, a carpenter from Suwayda, told CNN that “the situation inside the city is dire.”

“Electricity has been out since yesterday (Tuesday) morning. Mobile service is extremely weak, and the internet barely works,” Hamdan said. “Landlines are completely down. Water was also cut off yesterday, though it returned briefly this morning.”

Hamdan said that the current Syrian interim government “bears full responsibility for what’s happening in Suwayda.”

Syria’s health ministry said “dozens of bodies were found in Suwayda National Hospital after the withdrawal of the outlawed groups.”

The ministry said those bodies “belong to Syrian security personnel and civilians,” but without providing further details.

In Syria, the Druze community is concentrated around three main provinces close to the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights in the south of the country, and form a majority in the Suwayda province.

More than 20,000 Druze also live in the Golan Heights, a strategic plateau that Israel seized from Syria during the Six-Day War in 1967, before formally annexing it in 1981.

Hundreds of people from the Druze community have seemingly crossed over from the Golan Heights into Syria in recent days.

It’s unclear when the crossings happened, but separate videos circulating on social media Tuesday and Wednesday showed people carrying Druze flags crossing a border fence allegedly from the Golan Heights into Syria.

They were apparently responding to pleas from Druze leaders to support their community in the ongoing clashes.

Addressing the Druze community in Israel and the Golan Heights Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu called on them not to cross over the border.

“I have one request for you: You are citizens of Israel. Do not cross the border,” he said.

This story has been updated with developments.

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