The Syrian government started evacuating Bedouin families from the city of Suwayda on Monday, where a fragile ceasefire between the Druze minority and Bedouin fighters appears to be holding after a week of clashes.

Violence between the Druze militia and Sunni Muslim clans has resulted in the deaths of hundreds and threatened to unravel Syria’s already fragile postwar transition.

The clashes also led to a series of targeted attacks against the Druze community, followed by revenge attacks against the Bedouins.

The UN International Organisation for Migration (IOM) said some 128,571 people were displaced in the hostilities that started with a series of attacks a week ago.

Israel also launched dozens of air strikes on the Druze-majority Suwayda province, targeting government forces who had effectively sided with the Bedouins.

Syrian state media said on Sunday that the government had coordinated with some officials in Suwayda to bring in buses to evacuate some 1,500 Bedouins from the city.

Syrian interim Interior Minister Ahmad al-Dalati told the state-run SANA news agency that the initiative will also enable displaced civilians from Suwayda to return, as the fighting has largely ceased and efforts for a comprehensive ceasefire are ongoing.

“We have imposed a security cordon in the vicinity of Suwayda to keep it secure and to stop the fighting there,' al-Dalati told the Syrian state-run news agency.

”This will preserve the path that will lead to reconciliation and stability in the province."