Explained: Who Are The Druze, Israel Has Set Out To Defend

The Israeli military on Wednesday launched an airstrike in the heart of Damascus, hitting the Syrian Defence Ministry headquarters as clashes in the southern Syrian city of Sweida continued to flare. This new wave of deadly sectarian violence has placed the spotlight on the Druze minority at the centre of rising tensions with Israel.

This attack was followed by Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu's vow to protect Druze citizens. He said Israeli forces were "acting to save our Druze brothers and to eliminate the gangs of the regime".

Who are the Druze? 

Originating in Egypt in the 11th century, the Druze are an Arabic-speaking sect that practices an offshoot of Islam which permits no converts, either to or from the religion, and no intermarriage.

They are an ethno-religious minority in Syria, Lebanon, Israel and the occupied Golan Heights. Roughly comprising one million people, the Druze form a majority in the Suwayda province. The community was at times caught between the forces of the former Assad regime and extremist groups during Syria’s almost fourteen-year civil war.

According to the BBC, half of its roughly one million followers live in Syria, where they make up about 3 per cent of the population. The Druze community in Israel is largely considered to be loyal to the Israeli state, owing to its members' participation in the military. Some 152,000 Druze people are living in Israel and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, according to the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics. 

When Israel occupied the Golan, the majority of the Druze, who identify as Syrian, turned down an offer of Israeli citizenship.  Although they received Israeli residency papers, those who declined are not regarded as Israeli citizens.

Hundreds of people from the Druze minority crossed over from the Golan Heights into Syria, the Israeli military said on Wednesday, apparently responding to pleas from Druze leaders to support their community, CNN reports. 

History of Clashes 

The Druze and Syria have historically been at odds, wrote the BBC. During Syria's almost 14-year civil war, the Druze operated their militias in southern Syria.

The Druze have resisted state attempts to impose authority over southern Syria. Since the fall of Assad in December, factions of the minority are divided in their approach to the new authorities, ranging from caution to outright rejection. Many object to the official Syrian security presence in Suweida and have resisted integration into the Syrian army, relying instead on local militias. 

In March, hundreds of people were killed during a crackdown on the Alawite sect, to which Assad belonged, in the western city of Latakia, and in April, clashes between pro-government armed forces and Druze militias left at least 100 people dead.

CNN reports that a key issue straining relations between Syria’s new government and the Druze is the disarmament of Druze militias and integration. Al-Sharaa, which aims to unite armed groups under a single military, has failed to reach deals with the Druze, who are adamant on keeping their weapons and separate militias.

In May, Israel claimed its fighter jets bombed an area next to the presidential palace in Syria's capital, Damascus, on Friday morning, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to protect the Druze religious minority following days of deadly sectarian violence.

Israel’s Intervention 

About 130,000 Israeli Druze reside in northern Israel's Carmel and Galilee.  Unlike other minority groups inside Israel, Druze men over the age of 18 have been drafted into the Israeli military since 1957. Many of them go on to become high-ranking officers, and many of them pursue professions in the security and police forces.

According to the Israeli Prime Minister's office, the Israeli government also unilaterally established a demilitarisation zone in Syria that "prohibits the introduction of forces and weapons into southern Syria."

Syria rejects these claims and has repeatedly called on Israel to cease military actions that violate its sovereignty.

BBC reports that on Tuesday, the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel is “committed to preventing harm to the Druze in Syria due to the deep brotherly alliance with our Druze citizens in Israel, and their familial and historical ties to the Druze in Syria.”

On Tuesday, the chief  Druze religious leader, the Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri, called for international protection from “all countries” to “confront the barbaric campaign” by government and allied forces “using all means possible,” as per reports. 

“We are facing a complete war of extermination,” Al-Hijri said in a video statement.

According to CNN, a statement issued by other Druze leaders, however, welcomed the Syrian government intervention in Suwayda and called on the state to assert its authority. It also called for armed groups in the city to hand over weapons to government forces and for a dialogue to begin with Damascus.

The most recent strikes have primarily acted as a warning and a deterrent against the Syrian army deploying to southern Syria, with Israel seeking to create a demilitarised zone in the area. In particular, Israel fears the presence of Islamist fighters near its northern border, along the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.