A group of Druze Arab villages in southwestern Syria want to be part of Israel rather than rebel-held Syria, according to reports and videos circulating on social media.
Druze Arabs live in the mountainous region of the Levant, which overlaps with Israel, Lebanon, and Syria. They have had their own religion for about 1,000 years, which is separate from Islam but includes elements of three monotheistic religions.
Druze Arab mother and daughter walk in Yanujat, Israel. November 11, 2023 (Joel Pollack/Breitbart News)
Druze are usually loyal citizens of the country in which they reside, but they tend to be attached to the land rather than to a particular country. In Israel, some Druze Arab communities have chosen to participate in conscription into the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), and many have served with distinction, including in the current war.
The late Lieutenant Colonel Salman Habaka of the 53rd Tank Battalion of the Israel Defense Forces. He was killed in combat in November 2023 while rescuing soldiers from the elite Golani Brigade in Gaza. (Courtesy of Habaka Family)
When Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in the defensive Six-Day War in 1967, some Druze communities were separated from their relatives in neighboring Druze villages in Syria and shouted loudly across the border fence. They could only communicate by shouting. In some cases, brides traveled from Israel to Syria for arranged marriages. Some Druze in the Golan have also declined Israeli citizenship, either out of attachment to their Syrian identity or out of fear of reprisals against their Syrian relatives by the Assad regime.
But especially after Iran-backed Hezbollah began firing on Druze villages, the rockets that killed 12 children in the Druze village of Majdal Shams near the Syrian border in July 2024 The war, notorious for its attacks, tends to rally the Druze around Israel. Golan Heights.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offers condolences to the Druze leader in Majdal Shams, Golan Heights, Israel, July 29, 2024 (Koby Gideon/GPO)
Many Druze in Syria are now concerned that Syrian opposition forces, including Islamic extremists and al-Qaeda elements, as well as the so-called Islamic State (ISIS), could harm their community.
Part of the local Druze community has taken advantage of the rare opportunity of freedom to celebrate the country's liberation from the Assad regime, which is also celebrated by Druze in Israel and Lebanon (especially Assad's father Hafez As al-Assad was responsible for Assad's assassination). Druze leader Kamal Jumblatt, 1977).
But others, including those loyal to Assad's regime, want to see them incorporated into Israel rather than Syria, which is run by Islamic extremists.
of jerusalem post office explained:
“These villages were actually enclaves surrounded by rebel groups, mostly Sunni Islamists,” said Yusri Kayzlan, senior lecturer in the Department of Middle East and Islamic Studies at Shalem University and a Harry S. Truman University Fellow. the doctor added. Institute for the Promotion of Peace, Hebrew University.
“Israel has been facing conflict for years. On the one hand, it was trying to build some understanding mechanism with the rebel groups in the Golan Heights. On the other hand, it was trying to establish some mechanisms of understanding with the rebel groups in the Golan Heights. The engagement prompted Israel to create a balancing equation and sent a signal to the Islamists that it would not be tolerated to invade the Hader enclave and carry out violent genocide against the Druze.
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Heidran added: “Surprisingly, the Druze community in Israel, despite being the smallest of the Druze communities in the Middle East, essentially acts as a shield for the Druze and provides aid to the Druze in Syria.'' It has become a center of gravity.”
Since the fall of Assad's regime on Sunday, the Israel Defense Forces have moved into parts of southwestern Syria, including the former demilitarized zone between Israel and Syria, which includes Druze villages. There are unconfirmed reports that the IDF also operates outside the area.
It is against this backdrop that local Druze people are calling for Israel to remain and annex their community.
Joel B. Pollack is a senior editor at Breitbart News. Breitbart News Sunday Sunday nights from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM ET (4:00 PM to 7:00 PM PT) on Sirius XM Patriot. He is the author of a recently published e-book. Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 US Presidential Election. his recent book, red novembertells the story of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary from a conservative perspective. He is the recipient of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter @joelpolak.
