Yesterday, about one hundred and fifty Druze from their village of Majdal Shams on the Golan Heights, lynched two severely wounded Syrian men being evacuated in an IDF ambulance.
A similar attack was carried out in the Druze village of Churfesh in the Galilee.
What is this all about?
Well, its like this; The Druze in Syria are allies of the Assad regime, and they serve in his army, making them foes of an array of rebel groups there.
With government armies now on the run, the Druze are feeling the heat. Indeed there was a small massacre of Druze last week when one of their villages was abandoned by the Syrian army. So the Druze are nervous.
Israel, remaining neutral in the now, four year old civil war, has frequently extended humanitarian aid to severely wounded civilians and have hospitalized thousands in Israel.
It seems that the Druze suspect Israel of favoring or aiding some of the rebel forces fighting against the Assad/Hizbullah /Iran Axis, including tending to rebel wounded.
After the massacre of their kinsmen last week, Israeli Druze decided to stop any further transfer of Syrian wounded into Israel for treatment. Thus the lynching. The ambulance was stormed and the wounded were torn limb by limb. Two Israel officers were wounded as well.
It seems certain that this was not a spontaneous attack. It took intelligence gathering, communication and transportation. Israeli Druze soldiers may have played a part. It may be part of a Syrian government plan to discourage Israel from aiding any of the regime’s enemies. Anything is possible in the bloody mess that was once called Syria.
Druze serve in the IDF, some along the Syrian border. Some, in IDF uniform have been sited celebrating with local Druze in the after math of the lynch.
The Druze are a tight knit community and for the Druze of Israel it is difficult to watch as their Syrian brethren are quickly finding themselves on the losing side in the civil war. In Syria if you lose – you really lose.
Israel is a country, not a sect, and thus has national interests that are often nuanced. For the Druze it is far simpler. As long as the Syrian Druze were safe behind Assad’s regime , all was fine. Now they are ready to jump across the border to fight for their kinsmen.
And you thought that Jews struggle with “dual loyalty”?…
This is not the first time that Druze interests conflicted with those of their country, Israel. During the 1982 Lebanon war, Israel was allied with the Christian forces against the PLO and Syrian army. There was one problem. The Christians are historic, bitternemies of the Druze in Lebanon. On some occasions, Israeli Druze soldiers bolted to stand at the side of their kinsmen.
Who are the Druze and how did the Druze – Israel relationship evolve?
The Druze are a minority sect found in parts of Lebanon, Syria ,Jordan and Israel..
They are an ethnic and linguistic Arabs but cling to their secretive religion their founded by Al Daruzi, when they broke away from Islam in the Middle Ages.
The Muslim world has never forgiven the Druze for this act of apostasy and treason and so the Druze have carefully kept the details of their religious dogma a secret to the hostile out side world. They have also historically chosen the protective mountainous areas for their homes thus keeping the Muslim majority safely at arms length. They are also tough fighters
In 1948, as the beleaguered Jewish population of Israel fought off the combined Arab forces, the Druze at first chose to “go with the obvious winner”, the Muslims. However, after being bloodied in a key battle for the Galilee, the Druze reconsidered and withdrew from the war declaring their neutrality.
After Israel’s victory, the Druze leaders requested to enter a pact with the victorious new Jewish state and offered their sons to serve in the IDF which they do with distinction until today.
They are often found in the para military units responsible with security vis a vis the Arab populations since they are familiar with the language and culture.
Often when an Arab riot got out of hand and IDF troops were not effective, the very sight of a Druze manned jeep was enough to disperse the threatening crowd. They clearly spoke each other’s language.
The Druze have come to see Israel as a spunky little country delivering bloody noses to the ever menacing Muslim world threatening to wash over her. In this, they identified a parallel with their own experience. However, a “New Israel” has emerged in the last generation. Suddenly, Israel is retreating; Sinai, Lebanon, Gaza, Judea, Samaria. No longer are Israeli soldiers feared but rather have their hands tied as they flee from stone throwing Arab youngsters. This is not the Israel that won their respect in 1948 ans 1967. This is the Israel of Shimon Peres’ “New Middle East”
In the this New Middle East, the Druze revert to their Old Middle East mindset and take care of number one – their way.
