ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Clashes between Druze gunmen and security forces-affiliated personnel in Syria resulted in at least two deaths on Tuesday night, coming as Damascus struggles to contain sectarian tensions.

The Damascus suburb of Sahnaya, with a substantial Druze and Christian population, was the site of the clashes, which Syrian state media reported as having left 11 people dead.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported that the violence consisted of “clashes between gunmen linked to the authorities and local Druze fighters."

The wave of violence began on Monday following the spread of an audio clip, purportedly of a Druze individual, that included remarks deemed blasphemous and slanderous to the Prophet Mohammed.

Attacks by whom the SOHR deems "security forces and affiliated gunmen" on members of the Druze community in the Jaramana suburb of Damascus on Tuesday left 14 people dead, with the victims being equally split between Druze gunmen and security force assailants.

The Druze religious leadership, in a statement on Tuesday, said that the "fabricated" audio clip was meant to "sow strife and division," wholly denouncing the contents of its message and urging calm.

A subsequent meeting between the Damascus government and Druze leaders saw an agreement whereby the former vowed to pursue those culpable for the attacks.

The Druze are a religious minority that lives in Syria and other parts of the Levant, subscribing to an Abrahamic faith and calling themselves al-Muwahiddun (the monotheists). Their beliefs share numerous similarities with other Abrahamic religions. Druze religious tenets emphasize divine unity, a belief in reincarnation, and the eternity of the soul.

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the rebel group that spearheaded a December offensive that saw former Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad deposed, now comprises the bulk of the Syrian military. HTS leader and current Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa sparked concerns amongst the international community upon his ascension to power due to his former ties with the al-Qaeda extremist organization. However, his administration has repeatedly promised inclusive and tolerant rule for all ethnic and religious minorities in the country. 

In spite of these vows of inclusivity, Syrian security forces in March carried out an extensive campaign of "public executions" against the minority Alawites in the coastal regions of the west of the country, killing over 1,700 men, women, and children.