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Chilling Syria hospital video shows staff kneel before gunmen, 1 killed at point-blank for resisting
The footage, reportedly filmed inside Sweida National Hospital, shows a group of men in medical uniforms kneeling on the floor with armed men standing over them
A disturbing undated video doing the rounds on social media appears to show Syrian government loyalists executing hospital staff in Sweida, a city where intense clashes broke out between militias of the Druze minority community and armed tribal groups last month.
The footage, reportedly filmed inside Sweida National Hospital, shows a group of men in medical uniforms kneeling on the floor with armed men standing over them – identified as members of the Syrian defence and interior ministries.
The video published by activist media collective Suwayda 24 was dated July 16.
In the video, a man in a dark jumpsuit with “Internal Security Forces” written on it appears to be guiding the men in camouflage into the hospital. Another security camera shows a tank outside the facility.
Activist media groups say the gunmen were from the Syrian military and security forces.
Things escalate in the video when one detainee, slapped in the face by an armed man, appears to resist. He is immediately shot twice at close range. More gunfire follows, with several others collapsing to the ground.
HT could not independently verify the authenticity or timing of the video.
The incident is believed to have occurred amid fierce clashes in Sweida city, which began in July between Druze fighters and Sunni Bedouin tribes. According to Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) and local eyewitnesses, government forces initially entered Sweida to impose a ceasefire, but later sided with Bedouin militias against the Druze.
Syria’s interior ministry, in a statement posted by state-run news agency SANA, said deputy minister of interior for security affairs Maj Gen Abdul Qader Al-Tahhan was assigned to oversee the investigation "to ensure that the perpetrators are identified and arrested as quickly as possible.”
“We condemn and denounce this act in the strongest terms, and we affirm that the perpetrators will be held accountable and brought to justice to receive their just punishment, regardless of their affiliations," Associated Press quoted the statement.
Despite government recapture of Druze-populated villages in the surrounding region, the city of Sweida – home to over 70,000 people – remains under Druze control.
On Saturday, Sheikh Hikmat Al-Hijri, the spiritual leader of Syria’s Druze community, condemned the violence and called for an international inquiry into the hospital incident and wider conflict in the city. In a televised statement, he demanded international accountability: “Those responsible must be brought before the International Criminal Court,” he said, urging deployment of international observers to safeguard civilians.
