Israel said it carried out a strike in Syria against extremists who attacked members of the Druze community, following through on a promise to protect the minority group as sectarian violence spread near Damascus on Wednesday.

The strikes were south of Damascus, where Syrian security forces say they are battling gunmen from the religious minority.

STORY: Gunfire can be heard in this video in the streets of Sahnaya, south of Damascus as violence spread in Druze areas of the Syria capital on Wednesday.Reuters could not verify the exact date this video was filmed,