More than 500 people have been killed in the sectarian violence that has consumed the southern province of Sweida in Syria since Sunday, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The recent violence was one of the deadliest bouts of unrest in Syria since the collapse of the Assad regime.

Syrian troops pulled out of the Druze heartland province of Sweida on orders from the Islamist-led government, following days of deadly clashes that killed more than 500 people, according to

In Syria's Druze city of Sweida, sectarian violence has led to numerous deaths, with government forces clashing with Druze militia. The violence worsened after the government's arrival, deepening distrust of the Islamist-led government in Damascus.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Syrian government troops will be blocked from the area south of the capital Damascus to protect the Druze minority following Israel's attacks in the country earlier this week.

Syria said that its army had begun to withdraw from violence-hit Sweida following a wave of Israeli strikes on the capital and a US call for forces to leave.

After five days of hunkering down at his home in the southern city of Sweida, 33-year-old Hossam emerged on Thursday and drove around to survey the damage. Wherever he went, the smell of death lingered.

Vantage with Palki Sharma | N18G Syria’s war may have faded from headlines, but in Sweida, violence has erupted once again — this time killing over 100, mostly from the Druze community. A tribal feud between Druze and Bedouins spiralled into a deadly confrontation,

Israeli officials react to the ongoing violence in Syria's Sweida between regime forces and the local Druze community. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged Israeli Druze citizens not to cross the border amid ongoing clashes in Sweida in southern Syria on Wednesday afternoon.