SUWAYDA, Syria — Southern Syria's Suwayda province, close to Daraa, the cradle of the protests, is no longer removed from the battles ravaging other parts of the country. In the province, over which calm had prevailed since March 2011, the village of Dama witnessed a series of clashes beginning Aug. 16 between Druze residents supported by the Popular Committees and the pro-regime National Defense Forces (NDF) and Sunni-armed Bedouin groups backed by Jabhat al-Nusra as well as other armed opposition battalions stationed in al-Lajat, which borders Baraa and Suwayda.
On the outskirts of Suwayda city, the checkpoints of the local committees and NDF search for cameras, laptops or anything else considered a threat to the authorities. They ask why visitors are there. If the answer is not convincing, they will likely take personal identity cards to check whether visitors are wanted by the authorities.