Syrian government forces and Druze fighters exchange prisoners from summer clashes

AL MATUNA, Syria (AP) — Syrian government forces and Druze militiamen who control areas in the southern Sweida province on Thursday exchanged prisoners taken in clashes last summer, a rare step toward a possible political resolution of simmering tensions in the country.

The exchange was the first major sign of progress in attempts by the United States and Jordan to broker a political settlement between the two sides.

The Syrian government side handed over 25 prisoners while local authorities in the Druze-run parts of Sweida released 61 at a checkpoint in the al-Matuna area in northern Sweida. The exchange was facilitated by the International Committee of the Red Cross.

Syrian Interior Ministry spokesperson Noureddine al-Baba told journalists that the exchange deal was reached “through the combined efforts of international and local parties, and it reflects the Syrian state's commitment to all its citizens, from all backgrounds and affiliations and across all provinces.”

Stephan Sakalian, head of the ICRC delegation in Syria, expressed “hopes that this operation will pave the way toward possible further releases and dialogue between all parties on other humanitarian concerns,” including the fate of people who went missing during the violence.

In mid-July, armed groups affiliated with Druze leader Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri clashed with local Bedouin clans, spurring intervention by government forces, which effectively sided with the Bedouins.

Hundreds of civilians, mostly Druze, were killed, many by government fighters. Tens of thousands of people, both Druze and Bedouins, were displaced in the fighting.

Since then, a large group of the militias banded together under al-Hijri, creating a de facto anonymous area in large swaths of the province, backed by neighboring Israel.

Since former Syrian President Bashar Assad was ousted in an offensive by Islamist-led insurgents in December 2024, the new authorities in Damascus have struggled to unify the country and consolidate control over the territory.

A deal reached last month with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces that have controlled much of the country’s northeast was a significant step toward consolidation — and also left Sweida as the main area left outside government control.

The Druze religious sect began as a 10th-century offshoot of Ismailism, a branch of Shiite Islam. Over half of the roughly 1 million Druze worldwide live in Syria. Most other Druze live in Lebanon and Israel, including in the Golan Heights, which Israel seized from Syria in 1967 and later annexed.

Two Syrian government prisoners embrace after being released in a prisoner exchange between Syrian government forces and Druze militiamen in Sweida province, Syria, Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

A Syrian government combatant is assisted by Red Crescent paramedics after being released in a prisoner exchange between Syrian government forces and Druze militiamen in Sweida province, Syria, Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

Syrian government prisoners look out from a bus after their release in a prisoner exchange between Syrian government forces and Druze militiamen in Sweida province, Syria, Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

A Druze prisoner get off a minibus after his release in a prisoner exchange between Syrian government forces and Druze militiamen in Sweida province, Syria, Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

Red Cross staff look on as Syrian government prisoners arrive by bus after their release in a prisoner exchange between Syrian government forces and Druze militiamen in Sweida province, Syria, Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia launched a barrage of 420 drones and 39 missiles at Ukraine overnight, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday, as U.S. and Ukrainian envoys prepared to hold more talks in Geneva on ending the war that is now in its fifth year.

The bombardment, which included 11 ballistic missiles, targeted critical infrastructure and residential areas across eight regions of Ukraine, Zelenskyy said. Dozens of people, including children, were injured, officials said, though authorities did not immediately publish a confirmed total.

Zelenskyy said late Wednesday he had spoken by phone with U.S. President Donald Trump and thanked him for his “efforts and engagement” in pursuing peace negotiations.

The U.S.-brokered talks between Moscow and Kyiv are continuing but are deadlocked on the issue of the future of Ukrainian territory that Russia claims as its own.

Zelenskyy has pushed for a summit with Russia's President Vladmir Putin, saying a face-to-face meeting could be decisive in unlocking an agreement, but the Kremlin has rebuffed that proposal beyond inviting the Ukrainian president to Moscow, which Zelenskyy refused.

Trump representatives Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who were also discussing nuclear negotiations with Iran in Geneva before turning to the war in Europe, were due to meet with Rustem Umerov, the head of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council. They also joined Trump’s call with Zelenskyy.

Washington is looking to keep momentum in its yearlong push to stop the fighting and overcome deep enmity between the warring countries.

Ukrainian and European officials have accused Putin of feigning interest in peace negotiations, hoping to avoid punitive U.S. measures such as additional sanctions while pressing forward with the invasion.

Thursday’s talks between the American and Ukrainian envoys were to address details of a possible postwar recovery plan for Ukraine and discuss preparations for an upcoming trilateral meeting with Moscow officials, perhaps next week, according to Zelenskyy.

He said he has also tasked Umerov with discussing a possible prisoner exchange.

Russia returned 1,000 bodies of fallen soldiers to Ukraine, and got back 35 bodies of its fallen troops, Vladimir Medinsky, the head of the Russian delegation at previous talks with Ukraine, said Thursday. He did not say when the exchange happened.

Ukraine’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War later confirmed the return, though it referred to “bodies which, according to preliminary information provided by the Russian side, may belong to Ukrainian defenders.”

Russia struck gas infrastructure in the Poltava region and electrical substations in the Kyiv and Dnipropetrovsk regions, Zelenskyy said. Emergency crews responded in five other regions, as well as in the capital.

Ukraine’s air defenses shot down most of the Russian missiles, Zelenskyy said, crediting Western partners for timely delivery of additional air defense interceptors. Ukraine needs foreign help to sustain its fight against Russia’s bigger forces.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha urged allied countries to provide more military aid.

“When the whole world demands Moscow to finally stop this senseless war, Putin bets on more terror, attacks and aggression,” Sybiha said in a post on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website.

The Russian Defense Ministry said its air defenses shot down 17 Ukrainian drones overnight over a number of Russian regions, as well as the Black and Azov Seas.

Ukraine's domestically developed long-range drones have struck oil refineries, fuel depots and military logistics hubs deep inside Russia.

Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Residential neighbourhood is seen from the broken window of a damaged apartment building hit by a Russian drone in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Kateryna Klochko)

Local residents walk a dog near a damaged apartment building hit by Russian drone in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Kateryna Klochko)