In Syria, violence continued between rival factions even after a ceasefire deal. Government troops withdrew overnight from a region as Israel said it would not allow Syrian forces south of Damascus, extending its attempted control of the area.

After five days of hunkering down at his home in the southern city of Sweida, 33-year-old Hossam emerged on Thursday and drove around to survey the damage. Wherever he went, the smell of death lingered.

Sharply escalating tensions in Syria appeared to ease on Thursday following a new ceasefire, a day after Israel bombed Damascus and threatened further attacks under the pretext of "protecting the Druze" amid sectarian clashes in the southern province of Sweida.

8-year-old Syrian girl, Amal, fled shelling on foot overnight (Delil Souleiman / Save the Children)

A surge in sectarian violence in southern Syria and Israeli airstrikes reaching central Damascus have pushed the war‑scarred country into a volatile juncture, a senior UN official said on Thursday, warning that renewed violence could shatter prospects for peace and fuel wider regional instability.

Israel has struck military tanks in southern Syria, where government forces and Bedouin tribes clash with Druze militias.

Hundreds of people have reportedly fled from Syria into Israel following the outbreak of violence in the south of the country, Israeli media reported on Thursday. The Israeli military returned dozens to the neighbouring country overnight,