The sectarian-tinged violence was directed at a suburb of the Syrian capital with a large population from the Druse minority. Local Druse leaders said they held the government responsible.

Gunfire erupted between the minority Druze sect and pro-government fighters on Tuesday. Fighting broke out after an audio clip circulated of a man criticizing Islam's Prophet Muhammad.

In her home in the Damascus suburb of Jaramana, Riham Waqqaf spent the night trying to distract her children from the sound of sectarian clashes that have terrified local residents. A mostly Druze and Christian suburb in southeast Damascus,