Who are the Druze and why is Israel attacking Syria?

It has shook a new wave of deadly sectarian violence Syria, as it was placed in focusing on the fragile security scene in the country, as the new government is trying to impose its authority on broken lands.

On Sunday, July 13, the kidnapping of a dealer from the Druze minority sparked days of deadly clashes between the Druze militias and the two Sunni fighters in southern Syria.

Later on Tuesday, July 15, Israel intervened militarily, saying that its forces were seeking to protect the Druze and eliminate the forces supporting the government accused of attacking it in Sweden. It was stated that at least 300 people have been killed in Suwaida since Sunday, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Violence is the first in Sweden Province in Dorida since the fighting in April and May between Druze fighters and the new security forces in Syria have killed dozens of people. Before that, it was said that the clashes in coastal provinces in Syria in March killed hundreds of members of the higher minority, to which former ruler Bashar al -Assad belongs.

The deadly turmoil, along with the violent Israeli strikes, has prepared fears of a security collapse in Syria, where the country is struggling with the repercussions of more than a decade from the civil war and the Islamic rebel that it leads recently in Damascus in December 2024.

The Druze is an ethnic minority rich in Arabic in Syria, Lebanon, Israel and the occupied Golan Heights. Druze faith is a branch of Shiite Islam with its unique identity and beliefs.

Half of nearly a million followers live in Syria, where they make up about 3 % of the population. The Druze community in Israel is largely loyal to the Israeli state, due to the participation of its members in military service. There are about 152,000 people who live in Israel and the Golan heights occupied by the Israeli, according to the Israeli Central Statistics Office.

They historically occupied an unstable position in Syria’s political system. During the civil war in Syria for nearly 14 years, Druze has operated its own militias in southern Syria.

Since the fall of Assad in December, Druze resisted the state’s attempts to impose power on southern Syria. While the Druze factions in Syria are divided into their approach towards the new authorities, from caution to explicit rejection, many objected to the official Syrian security presence in Sweden and resisted integration in the Syrian army – instead dependent on local militias.

Despite the Syrian government, which condemns the recent attacks on the Druze people and pledged to restore the regime in southern Syria, its forces were also accused of attacking the minority – with the Syrian Observatory in the United Kingdom to monitor the Human Rights War (SOHR) that document “brief executions” by government forces. These reports have fueled the lack of confidence between some members of the Druze community towards the authorities in Damascus.

After the sudden fall of Assad, Israel was communicating with the Druze community near its northern borders in an attempt to form alliances with the minorities of Syria. It has increasingly placed herself as a regional lawyer for minorities, including Kurds, Druze and Al Ala’a in Syria, while attacking military sites in Syria and government forces.

During sectarian clashes in May, Israel carried out strikes near the presidential palace in DamascusSaying that it was a warning against the attacks on the Druze. However, some Druze figures in Syria and Lebanon accused Israel of the influence of sectarian divisions to enhance their expansionary aspirations in the region.

The latest strikes were a warning and deterrence against the Syrian army, which is spreading in southern Syria, where Israel is seeking to create a citizen in the region. In particular, Israel fears the presence of Islamic fighters near its northern borders, along the Golan Heights occupied by Israel.

While the Israeli air strikes on July 15 were limited to targeting the security forces and vehicles in Suwaida, The Israeli army expanded its attacks on July 16The Ministry of Defense and the Syrian Army headquarters in Damascus. Syria has condemned the attacks.

The strikes represented the most dangerous Israeli escalation in Syria since December 2024, when hundreds of military sites have blurred throughout the country and It captured an insulating area that is not full of acceptance at the height of the Syrian GolanS. Israel has multiplied Syria several times, with the intention of preventing the new authorities from building its military capabilities – which are seen as a possible threat to Israeli security.

“The warnings in Damascus have ended – painful strikes will now come,” Israel Foreign Minister, Israel Katz, wrote on social media on July 16, shortly after the start of Israeli strikes on Damascus.

The targeting of the Syrian military headquarters was broadcast live by the leading Syria TV channel, from its studios on the other side of the building – with the patch of the show on the air fleeing the studio.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the United States “is very anxious” about violence and announced on July 16: “We have agreed on specific steps that would end this disturbing and terrifying situation tonight.”

Many Arab countries, including Lebanon, Iraq, Qatar, Jordan, Egypt and Kuwait have condemned the Israeli strikes targeting the Syrian forces and security forces. The Saudi Foreign Ministry denounced what it described as “Israel’s flagrant attacks” on Syria, while Iran described the attacks as “very predictable.”

Türkiye, who has a major interest in Syria after the corruption, described the strikes as “a sabotage action against Syria’s efforts to secure peace, stability and security.”

The United Nations Secretary -General Antonio Guterres also condemned the “Israeli” strikes in Suwaida and Damascus.

Violence emphasized the fragility of the security and political scene in Syria after the war, with the latest group of violence that feeds fears of renewed sectarian attacks throughout Syria.

At a time when Shar is trying to define control of Syria and unify its various groups, it remains to see whether his Islamic government will be able to reconcile the deep sectarian divisions in Syria, which has been neglected with years of civil war. Sectarian clashes, along with Israeli strikes, threaten to remove attempts to build the state and restore post -war.

Israel will probably continue to realize the new authorities and its Islamist fighters in the south, as an important security threat – pushing it to follow alliances with groups that may feel isolated by the new authorities.