In what may have been an effort to divert focus away from the Syrian government's ongoing offensive against the remaining Islamic State pocket in the Yarmouk Basin in southwest Deraa province, Islamic State fighters based in the Suwayda' desert launched attacks against Druze villages in the eastern Suwayda' countryside in addition to suicide bombings targeting Suwayda' city. The Islamic State's attacks in Suwayda' have proven to be bloody, killing hundreds of people. Note for context that Suwayda' province's population is primarily Druze.
To discuss the Suwayda' attacks further, I interviewed Abbas Abu Shaheen of the group Katibat Jalamid 'Urman, which is part of the loyalist-leaning Liwa al-Jabal conglomeration of Suwayda' factions. Liwa al-Jabal has participated in the fight to repel the Islamic State attacks in Suwayda' province.
This interview was conducted on the afternoon of 27 July 2018. Any explanations of terms and important place references are in square brackets. Some of the questions and answers have been reordered for clarity.