Israel hit Damascus with powerful airstrikes on Wednesday, ostensibly to “protect” Syria’s Druze minority which has borne the brunt of ongoing sectarian clashes in the country.

Israel launched airstrikes in Damascus on Wednesday, saying it aimed to protect Syrian Druze, a part of a minority that also has followers in Lebanon and Israel.

Clashes that shook southern Syria this week have killed hundreds of people, including civilians, and drawn in an array of both local and international players, harking back to the dynamics of the country’s nearly 14-year civil war.

Syria's leader Ahmed al-Sharaa accused Israel on Thursday of sowing discord with a wave of airstrikes following deadly clashes with the Druze community.

The White House is attributing the outbreak of violence in the Middle East between the Syrian government and Israel to a "misunderstanding" over ethnic grudges.

An Israeli military official said, "we are reinforcing forces in the Golan Heights and along the border, ready for a multitude of scenarios."

Israeli officials react to the ongoing violence in Syria's Sweida between regime forces and the local Druze community. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged Israeli Druze citizens not to cross the border amid ongoing clashes in Sweida in southern Syria on Wednesday afternoon.

Syrian forces had deployed in the southern city of Sweida, despite Israeli warnings, trying to contain clashes between members of the Druze minority and Bedouin.