Suwayda, the Druze community is facing what its members have described as an "ethnic cleansing campaign" amidst a rapidly deteriorating security situation that has claimed the lives of hundreds over the past week.

Syria should not be allowed back into the international community unless it is able to uphold protections for the Druze and its other minority groups, Israel has said.

Syria's Islamist-led government said its security forces were deploying in the predominantly Druze southern city of Sweida on Saturday and urged all parties to respect a ceasefire after days of factional bloodshed that has left hundreds dead.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio described the situation as "complicated" but said it looked like a "misunderstanding".

Israel launched massive airstrikes in Damascus, Syria, as a response to apparent attacks against the Druze minorities in Sweida. Lina Sinjab with BBC News, a CBS News partner, has more.

That afternoon, Netanyahu and Katz ordered the Israeli military to once again attack government forces and weaponry in Suweida. They said they were working to prevent them from harming the Druze and to "ensure the demilitarisation" of areas near Israel's border.

Israel launched powerful airstrikes in Damascus on Wednesday, damaging the defence ministry and hitting near the presidential palace as it vowed to destroy Syrian government forces attacking Druze communities in southern Syria and demanded they withdraw.

Violence in Syria's Druze province has triggered Israeli military action, complicating relations with Turkey and creating a power vacuum that Iran could exploit.