What has happened?
Last Sunday, bloody clashes broke out in Sweida in southern Syria when armed Bedouins kidnapped a Druze vegetable vendor.
To curb the escalating conflict, the Syrian regime deployed its military in the province on Tuesday. A ceasefire was declared but to no effect. Government forces have taken control of several Druze villages and residents testify to murder, looting and burned-down houses, reports AFP.
At the same time, the neighboring country Israel, which portrays itself as the protector of the Druze, entered the conflict. The country has launched air strikes against both Sweida and the capital Damascus.
Late on Wednesday evening, the Syrian government began to withdraw its forces from Sweida. An agreement to "restore calm" in the area has been established between the parties, according to the US.
In total, several hundred people have been killed and many injured in the unrest since Sunday.
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Who are the Druze?
The Druze are an ethnic group that makes up about three percent of the Syrian population, around half a million people, writes BBC. The Druze religion is originally a branch of Shia Islam, but applies a special form of Islam with its own values.
They have long had an uncertain position in Syria and the conflict with the Bedouins in Sweida dates back a long time. During the civil war, the ethnic group had its own militia, in part to defend itself against Muslim fundamentalists who saw them as infidels.
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Who rules in Syria?
The former long-time Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad was overthrown in December last year by the Islamist rebel group Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS). At that time, the country's civil war had been going on since 2011.
Since the overthrow, there has been a sense of unease among Syria's religious and ethnic minorities, including the Druze, about their position in the country, according to AP.
The country is now ruled by HTS leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, who was previously also a member of al-Qaeda. He has promised that the rights of minorities will be protected, but despite this, several sectarian murders have taken place against minorities since al-Assad's fall.
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Why does Israel support the Druze?
In Israel, there is a Druze minority and the country has appointed itself as the protector of the ethnic group and has increased its support since the power shift in Syria.
The recent attacks are "a response to the regime's activity against the Druze population" according to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
At the same time, the country wants to avoid militant groups on its northern border and has previously warned Syria against deploying military south of Damascus, a possible reason for now entering into another war front in addition to those in Lebanon and Gaza.
