The leaders of Israel and Syria have agreed to a ceasefire days after major Israeli strikes​, a U.S. envoy said Friday, as he urged all sides in war-torn Syria to lay down arms.

The Syrian presidency announced on Saturday an immediate and comprehensive ceasefire following days of bloodshed in the predominantly Druze province of Sweida that has left over 700 people dead, according to a war monitor.

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa on Thursday accused Israel of attempting to drag Syria into a war and said his country would not take the bait. "We, the people of Syria, know very well who is trying to drag us into war and who is working to divide us,

Israel launched rare strikes in Damascus on Wednesday in a campaign it said was aimed at defending the Druze community after days of clashes in the southern city of Sweida.

Tensions between Israel and Syria have reached a boiling point. The Syrian Army has reportedly withdrawn from the key Druze city of Sweida following relentless Israeli airstrikes. Damascus lies in ruins as Israeli forces target key Syrian military installations,

After a massacre perpetrated by Syrian government forces in a Druze city, the IDF launched airstrikes on behalf of its own Druze community.

"If Israel feels that a certain leader...is an evident threat to its national security, it will operate," a former Israeli envoy told Newsweek.

DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — The Israeli army said Wednesday that it struck near the entrance to the Syrian Ministry of Defense in Damascus. The strike came as clashes continued in the southern Syrian city of Sweida after a ceasefire between government forces and Druze armed groups collapsed.