Statement by the World March of Women (North Africa and Middle East Region) on the events in Sweida

We publish here the statement by the World March of Women – North Africa and Middle East Region related to what happened in Sweida.

Statement by the World Match of Women – North Africa and Middle East Region
At a critical moment in the history of our region, we at the World March of Women – North Africa and Middle East Region are following with growing dismay and anger the systematic violence and bloody siege being waged in the Sweida Governorate in southern Syria. This siege has morphed into a form of slow-motion genocide, carried out in full view of the world, without the international community lifting a finger.
What is happening today in Sweida is not an isolated incident. Rather, it falls within the context of a clearly defined strategic plan that serves the partition projects that Israel has long sought to impose on Syria and the region. This plan is implemented through a policy of “divide and conquer,” exploiting sectarian tensions and dismantling the unity of the Syrian people.
In recent weeks, Sweida has witnessed a wave of brutal incidents, resulting in the deaths of at least 1,386 victims, including women and children, in massacres and systematic attacks targeting defenseless civilians, orchestrated by extremist militias linked to security agencies and regional powers. Testimonies indicate that some of these groups derive their background from a pre-state culture—Bedouin tribalism—which is now being reactivated as a tool of subversion by the transitional government in Syria and regional powers, led by Turkey, to serve the policies of chaos and systematic destruction.

Added to this bloody reality is a policy of starvation practiced against more than half a million people through a stifling siege that prevents the entry of food and medical supplies, exposing the population, especially women and children, to hunger, thirst, disease, and slow death. This is a crime of international silence par excellence, and a clear complicity of the de facto powers that leave civilians prey to siege, starvation, and displacement.

What is happening in Sweida is not just a humanitarian crisis; it is a war crime and a crime against humanity, carried out through starvation, cutting off electricity, water, and communications, preventing the entry of fuel, flour, and aid, and closing the border crossings to relief teams. All these violations are taking place under the control of the security services and their alliance with armed political Islamist militias, which reproduce the exclusionary jihadist model and practice silent genocide against religious and ethnic components.
While we condemn the brutal crimes committed against the sons and daughters of Sweida, we also strongly condemn the actions of some suspicious groups who raised the flag of the Zionist entity, in a provocative and unacceptable act that constitutes a stab at the heart of the Syrian people’s struggles and history of resistance. These groups do not represent the people of Sweida or the Syrians; rather, they represent an extension of a Zionist colonial project aimed at dismantling Syria and luring minorities into the arms of the occupation under the pretext of protection. We, in the World March of Women, see in this dangerous scene an expression of the project to dismantle the nation-state, the dominance of sectarian and religious authoritarian projects, and the alliance of political corruption with jihadist weapons, as part of the imperialist Zionist plan for the “New Middle East,” which is destroying what remains of women’s right to life and dignity, and the right of Syrians to self-determination.
In this context, women’s bodies have been transformed into tools of pressure and intimidation—from kidnapping, to displacement, to impoverishment and starvation, to the erasure of their right to security and dignity. The suffering of children in Sweida has become living testimony to the world’s failure and the falsity of international claims to protect human rights.
Accordingly, we declare the following:

• We condemn in the strongest terms the crime of the systematic siege of Sweida Governorate, and hold the Syrian government, its security services, and the extremist militias allied with it fully responsible.
• We condemn any Israeli or foreign intervention that deepens chaos and arms militias, and we reject turning civilians into hostages in conflicts of regional interests. We demand immediate and safe humanitarian corridors for the entry of food and medical aid, and guaranteed press access to ensure credible documentation.
• We call on the international community, human rights organizations, and women’s rights organizations to take urgent action and pressure for an immediate end to the violations.
• We warn against systematic forced displacement, considering it an additional crime that exacerbates the record of genocide.
• We call on the Syrian transitional government to reconsider its sectarian policies and engage in a national dialogue that puts the interests of all Syrians first.
• We affirm that authoritarian political Islam does not represent a solution, but rather embodies a facet of contemporary fascism.
• We call on feminist movements and civil society to stand in solidarity with the women of Sweida to confront systematic violence and defend life.
• We demand that all those involved in the crimes be held accountable, that immunity be lifted from war criminals, and that women and religious minorities be protected from genocidal policies.
• We declare our full solidarity with the women of Sweida and all those who raise their voices against the siege, hunger, and injustice. We believe that women’s resistance is the path to true salvation.
  

July 29, 2025
World March of Women – MENA Region