Illustrative image. (Syrian Arab News Agency)
On May 1, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz issued another warning to Syria’s Islamist-led interim government against harming the Druze religious minority.
“I again warn the head of the Syrian regime, Jolani: If the harm to the Druze in Syria does not stop, we will respond very harshly,” he says in a statement, referring to the country’s leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa.
The last few days saw deadly sectarian-field clashes between Druze fighters and government forces close to the capital, Damascus.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that the clashes claimed the lives of 17 people in the town of Jaramana on April 28 and 22 people in nearby town of Sahnaya on April 29 and 30. Separately on April 30, 15 Druze fighters were killed in an ambush while heading from al-Suwayda governorate to Damascus, according to the London-based monitoring group.
Citing historic relations with Israel’s own Druze community, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) intervened in support of Druze fighters in Sahnaya, launching a few strikes.
Nevertheless, Sahnaya fell into the hands of government forces who amassed near the town and Jaramana after an audio clip of a Druze man insulting the Muslim Prophet Mohamad surfaced online earlier in the week. Later, reports of mass arrests, beatings and summary executions emerged from Sahnaya.
One of the people executed was identified as the mayor of the city who was engaged in talks to de-escalate with the government.
Katz’s new threat came just hours after the spiritual leader of the Druze in Syria Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri condemned what he called a “genocidal campaign” by the government against his people, calling for “international protection” for all minorities in the country.
Separately, the IDF announced that two Syrian Druze, who were apparently wounded during the clashes near Damascus, were evacuated by its troops to a hospital in Israel.
The two were taken to Ziv Hospital in the city Safed, where three other wounded Syrian Druze were taken by the military a day earlier.
The military said in a statement that its troops are “deployed to southern Syria and prepared to prevent hostile forces from entering the area and Druze villages.”
“The IDF continues to monitor the developments, while maintaining readiness for defense and different scenarios,” it added.
Despite Israel’s threats, Syrian media reported on May 1 that the government was pressuring Druze fighters in Jaramana to hand over their weapons similar to Sahnyah. Videos posted to social networks also showed large convoys heading in the direction of al-Suwayda, the heartland of Druze.
All in all, a new round of clashes between government forces and Druze fighters appear to be imminent. The government has so far shown no willingness to engage in any positive way with the group or any other minorities. It remains unclear if Israel will provide serious support to the Druze in any upcoming battle.
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isreal cares nothing for the druze , never has . but hasbara agents know genocide of druze christians is useful international propaganda . so they act like good guys while the continued destruction of syria is the only aim of the greater israel project . why else would the idf control all south of damascus ?
that’s right, as they care. they just want to expand conflict with this. wahhabi scum is just expandable for them. i swear i just knew that it will be just like this.
israel will push russian cowards out of syria…hehehehehee
it would be our all dream if shlomos, who are such bitches, gays and cowards unable to defeat even a few poorly armed hamas fighters in gaza since 1,5 years, would be so stupid to confront directly russia, than russia could solve the shlomo problem forever. heheheh
defence minister katz is one of the jewish warcriminals the world would love to see dancing a jig at the end of a rope. together with the hitler inspired jew netanyahu!