Over 500 people people have been killed in southern Syria's Sweida province, a war monitor said Thursday, giving an updated toll after several days of clashes that triggered the deployment of government forces.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights counted 79 Druze fighters and 154 civilians from Sweida among the dead, including 83 people "who were summarily executed by members of the defense and interior ministries". The clashes also claimed the lives of 243 government personnel and 18 Bedouin fighters, in addition to three members of Bedouin tribes "who were summarily executed by Druze fighters".

President Donald Trump hosted a pair of Arab Gulf leaders at the White House on Wednesday as violence between Israel and Syria renewed doubts about his pledge to impose peace on the Middle East.

Trump held a meeting in the Oval Office with Bahrain's crown prince and dined privately with Qatar's prime minister.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu suffered a major political blow on Wednesday as a key governing partner announced it was quitting his coalition government, leaving him with a minority in parliament as the country faces a litany of challenges.

Shas, an ultra-Orthodox party that has long served as kingmaker in Israeli politics, announced that it would bolt the government over disagreements surrounding a proposed law that would enshrine broad military draft exemptions for its constituents — the second ultra-Orthodox governing party to do so this week.

Syrian government forces largely withdrew from the southern province of Sweida Thursday following days of vicious clashes with militias of the Druze minority.

Under a ceasefire agreement reached the day before, which largely halted the hostilities, Druze factions and clerics have been appointed to maintain internal security in Sweida, Syria's interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa said in an address broadcast early Thursday.

A fire engulfed a newly opened shopping center in eastern Iraq, killing more than 60 people, including children, Iraqi officials said Thursday.

Civil defense teams rescued more than 45 people who became trapped when the fire broke out late Wednesday in the city of Kut, the Interior Ministry said in a statement. Others are still missing, according to the state-run Iraqi News Agency.

The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem said an Israeli strike on Gaza's only Catholic church killed two people on Thursday, as Israel said it "never targets" religious sites.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said Thursday that "Israeli strikes on Gaza have also hit the Holy Family Church", slamming "unacceptable" attacks on the civilian population.

Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa on Thursday hailed U.S., Arab and Turkish mediation for saving the region from an "unknown fate", while criticizing Israel for targeting civilian and government facilities.

"The Israeli entity resorted to a wide-scale targeting of civilian and government facilities," he said in a televised address.

Syrian government officials and leaders in the Druze religious minority announced a renewed ceasefire Wednesday after days of clashes that have threatened to unravel the country's postwar political transition and drawn military intervention by powerful neighbor Israel.

Convoys of government forces began withdrawing from the city of Sweida, but it was not immediately clear if the agreement, announced by Syria's Interior Ministry and in a video message by a Druze religious leader, would hold. A previous ceasefire announced Tuesday quickly fell apart, and a prominent Druze leader, Sheikh Hikmat Al-Hijri, disavowed the new agreement.

The Israeli military launched Wednesday rare airstrikes in the heart of Damascus, hitting the Syrian Defense Ministry headquarters as clashes in the southern Syrian city of Sweida continued to flare.

Israel's attack came hours after a drone strike on the same building. Syrian state media reported at least one dead and 18 other people wounded. Another strike hit near the presidential palace in the hills outside of Damascus.

The United States' special envoy for Syria on Wednesday called on all parties to step back and engage in dialogue for a lasting ceasefire in Syria following clashes with Druze factions in the south and Israeli strikes in Damascus.

"We unequivocally condemn violence against civilians in Sweida... All parties must step back and engage in meaningful dialogue that leads to a lasting ceasefire," Tom Barrack said on X, adding that "perpetrators need to be held accountable".