CCTV footage showing armed men executing an unarmed volunteer inside a Syrian hospital ignites outrage as Sweida’s sectarian conflict deepens.
Syria’s Interior Ministry has launched an urgent investigation into disturbing CCTV footage showing the execution of an unarmed civilian inside Sweida National Hospital in the predominantly Druze city of Sweida, Reuters reported Monday.
The footage, verified by Reuters and eyewitnesses, is the latest flashpoint in a region wracked by sectarian bloodshed that has already claimed over 1,000 lives in recent clashes between Bedouin tribes and Druze fighters.
In a strongly worded statement, the ministry said it “condemns and denounces this act in the strongest terms” and confirmed that the deputy minister for security affairs will directly oversee the probe to ensure swift arrests.
The Graphic Footage
Dated July 16, 3:16 p.m., the video shows five armed men — four in green military fatigues and one in a black “Interior Ministry” uniform — confronting hospital staff in surgical scrubs. The victim, identified as civil engineer Muhammad Bahsas, resists being forced into a chair before being overpowered. Moments later, he is shot twice while on the floor — first with a rifle, then a pistol. His body is dragged away, leaving a trail of blood on the hospital floor.
Eyewitness Accounts
A senior orthopaedic doctor at the hospital told Reuters that Bahsas had arrived to volunteer and was targeted after security forces stormed the facility on July 16. Staff were confined to their rooms while the armed men searched for weapons.
Political Fallout
The Syrian Defense Ministry has not responded to questions about the attackers’ identities. Meanwhile, the killings come amid a wave of execution-style slayings reported in Sweida, where violence only escalated after Syrian armed forces were deployed on July 15. Witnesses say the situation worsened following the army’s arrival, leading to its withdrawal after Israeli airstrikes and mounting diplomatic pressure.
In a televised address, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa accused Israel of stoking internal unrest in an attempt to destabilize Syria.Syria’s Interior Ministry has launched an urgent investigation into disturbing CCTV footage showing the execution of an unarmed civilian inside Sweida National Hospital in the predominantly Druze city of Sweida, Reuters reported Monday.
The footage, verified by Reuters and eyewitnesses, is the latest flashpoint in a region wracked by sectarian bloodshed that has already claimed over 1,000 lives in recent clashes between Bedouin tribes and Druze fighters.
In a strongly worded statement, the ministry said it “condemns and denounces this act in the strongest terms” and confirmed that the deputy minister for security affairs will directly oversee the probe to ensure swift arrests.
The Graphic Footage
Dated July 16, 3:16 p.m., the video shows five armed men — four in green military fatigues and one in a black “Interior Ministry” uniform — confronting hospital staff in surgical scrubs. The victim, identified as civil engineer Muhammad Bahsas, resists being forced into a chair before being overpowered. Moments later, he is shot twice while on the floor — first with a rifle, then a pistol. His body is dragged away, leaving a trail of blood on the hospital floor.
Eyewitness Accounts
A senior orthopaedic doctor at the hospital told Reuters that Bahsas had arrived to volunteer and was targeted after security forces stormed the facility on July 16. Staff were confined to their rooms while the armed men searched for weapons.
Political Fallout
The Syrian Defense Ministry has not responded to questions about the attackers’ identities. Meanwhile, the killings come amid a wave of execution-style slayings reported in Sweida, where violence only escalated after Syrian armed forces were deployed on July 15. Witnesses say the situation worsened following the army’s arrival, leading to its withdrawal after Israeli airstrikes and mounting diplomatic pressure.
In a televised address, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa accused Israel of stoking internal unrest in an attempt to destabilize Syria.
