Syrian interior ministry forces began deploying in Sweida on Saturday under a US-brokered deal intended to avert further Israeli military intervention in the Druze-majority province.

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".

Members of Syria's Druze community are searching for loved ones and counting their dead after days of clashes in a southern province that left bloodied bodies of civilians on the streets and homes looted.

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

The conflict had drawn airstrikes against Syrian forces by neighboring Israel in defense of the Druze before a truce halted most of the fighting.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the Damascus headquarters served as a command center for deploying regime forces to Suwayda, a southern Syrian region gripped by days of deadly clashes between government troops, Druze militias, and Bedouin groups.