The US envoy says Washington does not back the Sweida sheikh, and armed groups close the Sweida–Damascus highway

What happened

In an interview reported on 23–24 October 2026, US envoy Tom Barrack said Washington does not back a Druze religious leader in Sweida who gives the impression of US support — SANA names him as Hikmat al-Hijri — called the armed groups' conduct unacceptable, and said the Sweida–Daraa area had become a centre of captagon production. On 24 October, by the Sweida media directorate's account to SANA, armed groups closed the Sweida–Damascus highway in both directions at the Um al-Zaytoun checkpoint they hold, while Internal Security kept the al-Matouna checkpoint open. No casualties were reported and no factional statement was found.

The authority dispute hardened without becoming violent: the state and the armed groups each hold a checkpoint on the province's main road, and the groups closed theirs. The envoy's remarks are a US characterisation, not an Israeli act. How long the closure lasted, and the groups' own account, are not established.

Confidence: Moderate