In Beirut, Lebanon, tensions are escalating between the Druze minority, Syria’s interim government, and Israel. A prominent Druze leader, Walid Jumblatt, announced on Sunday his intentions to visit Syria’s interim leader amidst these growing tensions. He expressed concern about potential Israeli plots aimed at creating sectarian divisions and chaos in the region, specifically targeting Arab national security.
Recent clashes in Syria have seen Syrian Druze gunmen facing off against government security forces in Jaramana, located on the outskirts of Damascus. With the downfall of President Bashar Assad in December, Israeli forces have moved into southern Syria to establish a demilitarized buffer zone. In response to the unrest, Israel’s defense ministry recently instructed its military to prepare to safeguard Jaramana and ensure the protection of the Druze community.
Back in the southern province of Sweida, predominantly inhabited by Druze, resistance continues against both the Assad regime and recent Israeli military interventions. The Druze, a religious minority originating as an offshoot of Ismailism from Shiite Islam in the 10th century, have a significant presence in Syria, which houses over half of their global population. The rest primarily reside in Lebanon and Israel, including areas in the Golan Heights that Israel seized during the 1967 Mideast War and later annexed in 1981.
Jumblatt, a key political figure in Lebanon and possibly the Middle East’s most influential Druze leader, combines his roles as a staunch critic of Israel and an advocate for Palestinian rights. He has also been vocal against the Assad family’s rule in Syria. His last visit to Syria occurred in December following the swift Islamist-led insurgency by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, which toppled Bashar Assad. During that visit, Jumblatt held talks with Syria’s interim leader Ahmad al-Sharaa. In the past, particularly in 2015 during the Syrian civil war, he negotiated with Syrian opposition in Idlib to address reports of Druze persecution and attacks by extremist groups in the northwestern province.
