New Delhi, Nov. 18 -- Members of Syria's security and military services have been detained as part of an investigation into sectarian violence in the southern province of Sweida in July that left hundreds of people dead, investigators said Sunday.

The head of a Syrian committee investigating the violence in Sweida held a news conference in the capital, Damascus, to talk about progress made but did not release a death toll, saying this will come in the final report that is expected by the end of the year.

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