Video: Syria Hospital Staff Forced To Kneel. One Who Rose Up Shot Dead

An undated video released by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) shows the execution of employees of a hospital by fighters loyal to Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa's government, reports Russian state-controlled media RT.

The video, filmed inside the Sweida National Hospital, shows a large group of men in hospital uniforms kneeling on the floor at gunpoint.

Several armed men, identified by SOHR as members of the Syrian Defence and Interior Ministries, can be seen surrounding them.

One detainee, after being slapped across the face by an armed man, appears to push back. He is immediately shot twice at point-blank range. The footage then shows further firing, with multiple victims falling to the floor. 

NDTV could not independently verify the undated video. 

The incident took place during intense clashes in the city of Sweida between Druze fighters and Sunni Bedouin tribes, which began in July. According to SOHR and local witnesses, government troops entered Sweida, around 110 km from the Syrian capital Damascus, to enforce a ceasefire but ultimately aligned with the Bedouin factions against Druze militias.

Sweida, a city of more than 70,000 people and the administrative centre of Sweida province, remains under the full control of Druze forces despite the government having retaken numerous Druze villages in the surrounding area. 

On Saturday, Sheikh Hikmat Al-Hijri, the spiritual leader of Syria's Druze community, called for an international investigation into the Sweida violence, including the events at the hospital. Speaking in a televised address, he demanded that those responsible be brought before the International Criminal Court and called for international observers to be deployed to protect civilians.

The Druze are a minority in Israel, with many serving in its military. Israeli involvement in the conflict marked a rare direct intervention in Syria's south since the war began. According to Druze leaders, Israeli strikes were instrumental in preventing a wider-scale massacre of their community.