Israeli leaders said they launched attacks on Syria this week to protect members of the Druze religious group in the country’s south, amid clashes in the area.

President Ahmed al-Shara said the airstrike on Damascus threatened to escalate sectarian violence, in his sharpest criticism of Israel since he came to power.

The fighting was sparked by a dispute between the Bedouin and Druze communities Syrian state-run media say Israel carried out an air strike near Syria's southern Druze-majority city of Suweida late on Thursday.