Syria postpones the Sweida parliamentary poll after sectarian violence
The southern province of Sweida and two other provinces will not be included in Syria’s first parliamentary election under its new Islamist government, which is set for September, due to security concerns, the electoral commission announced on Saturday.
Druze fighters and Sunni Bedouin tribes and government forces clashed in Sweida region in July, with hundreds of people reportedly murdered.
In order to stop what it claimed were mass murders of Druze by government forces, Israel launched airstrikes.
With adherents in Israel, Syria, and Lebanon, the Druze are a minority branch of Islam. The Sunni tribes and the Druze make up the majority of Sweida province, and there have long been conflicts between the two groups over resources and land.
According to the state news agency SANA, the ballot will also be postponed in the northern provinces of Hasaka and Raqqa until a “safe environment” is established, as stated by the Higher Committee for People’s Assembly Elections.
Until elections can be held in the three provinces, the seats allotted to them will stay empty, commission spokesperson Nawar Najmeh said SANA.
“The elections are a sovereign matter that can only be conducted in areas fully under government control,” he continued.
Voting for the 210-member People’s Assembly is scheduled to occur between September 15 and September 20, according to a statement made last month by the election commission secretary.
