U.S. Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack said early Saturday that Israel and Syria had agreed to a ceasefire, following Israel’s intervention this week in fighting between Syrian

Violence in Syria's Druze province has triggered Israeli military action, complicating relations with Turkey and creating a power vacuum that Iran could exploit.

Israeli leaders said they launched attacks on Syria this week to protect members of the Druze religious group in the country’s south, amid clashes in the area.

Syria border was breached, heartwarming family reunions decades in the making ensued for a number of hours, on both sides of the fence. But the happiness was still tempered by fear over the conflict.

“The Israeli Druze are now trying to use that and urge the Israeli government to protect fellow Druze in Syria,” he said, explaining, in part, the justification for Israel’s strikes on Syria, where the Druze community has traditionally been anti-Israel, even as some leaders grow closer to Israel.

Spiraling violence in southern Syria has turned global attention to the Druze, an ethno-religious minority of around 1 million, with populations in Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Jordan - Anadolu Ajansı

STORY: Violence in southern Syria has put a spotlight on a small but influential minority, the Druze.:: Who are the Druze?The Druze are Arabs who follow a religion derived from a branch of Islam.They maintain a degree of secrecy about the practice of their faith that emerged in the 11th century.

Members of Syria's Druze community are searching for loved ones and counting their dead after days of clashes in a southern province that left bloodied bodies of civilians on the streets and homes loo

Army says there were no further crossings overnight, is working to patch up holes in fence; Kurdish official urges Sharaa to rethink approach to minorities