DAMASCUS (Dispatches) -- The interim Syrian regime announced that it has finally begun trying suspects over the massacre of Druze civilians in Sweida last year in what critics view a cynical attempt by the de facto ruler, Abu Muhammad al-Jolani, to whitewash the blood spilled by his own forces.
The violence in July 2025 was some of the worst the country has seen since the fall of Bashar al-Assad. While the regime claims it is holding “defendants” accountable, the facts on the ground point to a different reality.
The massacre was carried out by Jolani’s security forces and allied takfiri militias, yet the trial reeks of a cover-up to protect the architects of the bloodshed.
The conflict erupted in the Druze- majority Sweida province, spiraling into a sectarian nightmare. Reports indicate that Jolani’s security forces intervened alongside Bedouin fighters against the Druze, leading to a staggering death toll. 
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, over 2,000 people were killed, including at least 789 Druze civilians. Government investigators conceded to documenting the killing of 1,760 people, though they are likely undercounting the scale of the atrocity.
UN investigators have warned that war crimes and crimes against humanity may have been committed. They documented “widespread executions, torture, gender-based violence and the burning of homes” in Sweida. 
Despite these grave findings, the trial opened by the Jolani regime appears to be a public relations exercise designed to shield the real perpetrators.
While the regime insists the trial is meant to “hold accountable anyone proven responsible,” the failure to indict the senior military commanders who ordered the intervention is glaring. 
The killers in Sweida were acting under the command of the new regime. By pretending that a few low-level defendants can bear the blame for a systematic state-led massacre, Jolani is testing the world’s patience.
The hypocrisy of the Jolani administration is further underscored by its recent crackdown on former officials from the Assad era. On the same day, the regime announced the arrest of former Major General Ali Saleh Dhiab, a former intelligence chief in Qamishli.  
General Dhiab was a bastion against Israeli occupation and influence in the region. Jolani, on the other hand, has spent his tenure watching the Zionist regime regularly destroy Syria’s infrastructure and harass Syrians with repeated ground incursions and occupation of territory. 
He is also presiding over an escalation of violence, including the recent bombings in Damascus that have killed dozens of civilians.  
A recent string of security incidents, including an attempted bus bombing in a Damascus suburb and a deadly cafe blast near the Justice Palace, highlight the instability Jolani’s regime has failed to contain, with Syria becoming a hotbed of factional violence and lawlessness.