Druze Life in Syria Precarious

The main topic of news this week has concerned the Druze community in southern Syria. I believe a bit of background is necessary here in order to understand how all this started.

SYRIA & the DRUZE.  A Druze channel gave some background to the trigger to the current situation: “The Bedouin in southern Syria operate a major smuggling trade (in particular drug smuggling into Jordan and Israel).  They often move as an armed force through Druze towns in the area, causing conflict and setting up the Druze as retaliatory targets.  The Druze got fed up with this, and put up armed roadblocks to stop it.  The Bedouin responded violently.”

In mosques in Daraa in southern Syria, a general mobilization was announced, and a declaration of jihad against Druze members of the south Syrian community, while Bedouin tribes, groups and factions were organizing for a renewed battle.

According to Al Jazeera, there has been a major displacement of more than 500 Bedouin families after their homes were burned in Sweida by Druze armed groups following Bedouin attacks and murders of the Druze.

One problem seems to be the fact that Al-Julani is not in control of Syria. There are reports of groups flowing into Syria from Turkey with the stated intention of committed jihad in the Druze community. The IDF is determined to preventing these groups from reaching the Druze communities and has clearly stated its intention to protect the Druze.

Regime head Al-Jolani says: “Syria will not be a place for creating chaos. We will confront attempts to create chaos with unity. We reject any attempt to divide Syria. We are now faced with two options: either confront Israel or reform our internal front. We are assigning local factions and tribal leaders the responsibility of maintaining security in Sweida.  I say to the Druze citizens that your protection is our priority; The state intervened in Sweida to end violations by groups operating outside the law.”

In spite of these statements Syrian regime personnel are disguising official vehicles and heading off to jihad against the Druze. Also tribal jihadis are reportedly demolishing Druze buildings in outer Sweida areas, southern Syria, as their advance continues.

In light of the recent attacks against the Druze in Sweida and the severe humanitarian situation in the region, and in accordance with the needs on the ground - Foreign Minister Gidon Sa’ar ordered the urgent transfer of humanitarian aid to the Druze in Sweida.  The aid package, worth NIS 2 million, will include - among other things - food packages, medical equipment, first aid kits, and medicines.

This is a developing story, it is difficult to predict what will happen next.

 

Angry Lebanese Druze tackle Hezbollah Terrorists

Video Of The Week -Druze Villagers Block Hezbollah launching Rockets https://tinyurl.com/yhcmfxtx

Angry villagers in Chouya accuse terror group of endangering lives by firing from near civilian areas; Lebanon army arrives, confiscates launcher, arrests 4 suspects

 By EMANUEL FABIAN6 6-8-2021

 For the full article go to Times Of Israel - https://tinyurl.com/22wr3c2d  

 Druze residents in a southern Lebanese village halted the Hezbollah crew with its rocket launchers that had fired into Israel on Friday, and detained its members until the Lebanese Army arrived, according to media reports and video footage.

 The group stopped a truck-mounted multiple launch rocket system as it drove through the village of Chouya, the video footage showed.

Some angry villagers could be heard protesting: “Hezbollah is firing rockets from between homes so that Israel hits us back.”

Others converged on one of the Hezbollah members in the truck, shouting, “Who are you, you dog?”

Hezbollah later issued a statement saying that the rockets were fired from remote areas, adding that the fighters were stopped in Shwaya on their way back.

“The Islamic Resistance was and will always be most keen about the safety of its people and avoiding any harm to them through its acts of resistance,” the statement said.

The Lebanese Army later arrived to confiscate the rocket launcher seen in the video and said it arrested four suspects involved in the rocket fire. Media reports said four Hezbollah members were detained.

Reports indicated that the rocket launchers mounted to the vehicle stopped by residents in Chouya were used in the earlier attack, and some of the barrels appeared to be empty.

Nineteen rockets were fired at the Golan Heights and Galilee Panhandle from Lebanon on Friday morning, the Israel Defense Forces and Hezbollah both said.

The IDF said 10 projectiles were intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defense system and six landed in open around Mount Dov. Another three rockets failed to clear the border and landed in Lebanese territory, according to the military. 

The Iran-backed Hezbollah terror group confirmed it had fired the projectiles, its heaviest barrage since the 2006 Second Lebanon War, which it said came in response to recent Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon. “The Islamic Resistance shelled open areas near the Sheba Farms with dozens of 122mm rockets,” it said in a statement carried in Arabic-language media.

Military spokesperson Ran Kochav told reporters on Friday that Israel has “no intention of going to war, but we do not want to turn the Lebanon border into a line of confrontation.”

“The incident shows Hezbollah’s deterrence, as it fired at open areas,” Kochav added.

He also asserted Hezbollah intentionally fired the rockets at open areas. Still, the Iron Dome system was activated to intercept some of the rockets, which is usually only done when projectiles are heading for populated areas, military bases or key infrastructure.

“This is a moderate response from Hezbollah, as to not escalate the situation,” Kochav said.

Rocket fire from Lebanon has been exceedingly rare in the 15 years since the 2006 Second Lebanon War Israel fought against Hezbollah, though it has occurred sporadically. Recent months, however, have seen a slight uptick, with 10 launches aimed at Israel during May’s 11-day war in Gaza, as well as last month, leading to fears among some that the phenomenon could become more common, as has happened in areas on the Gaza border.

The UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, known by its acronym UNIFIL, said Friday the situation was “very serious.”

“UNIFIL has detected rocket launches from Lebanon and return artillery fire by Israel. This is a very serious situation and we urge all parties to cease fire,” UNIFIL said in a statement.

Israel has conveyed to Lebanon via UN peacekeepers that it could intensify its response if calm is not returned to the border.

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WHO Single’s Out Israel Again

Video Of The Week - George Deek blasts Hamas -  https://tinyurl.com/2j8558mu

For The Full Article go to; https://tinyurl.com/5nc2vy62

GENEVA, May 26, 2021 — Deviating from its focus on the global response to the coronavirus pandemic, the annual assembly of the UN’s World Health Organization held a session today singling out Israel for rebuke.

The Jewish state was condemned in speeches by some 25 delegations, including Iran, Syria, Venezuela, Turkey, Lebanon and Cuba, for allegedly violating the health rights of Palestinians and the Druze population in the Golan Heights.

The session concluded with a vote of 82 to 14, with 40 abstentions, to adopt a resolution, submitted by the Palestinian delegation and co-sponsored by countries such as Cuba, Iraq, Libya, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Turkey, Venezuela and Yemen, requiring the WHO to hold the same debate at next year’s assembly, and to prepare another report on the “Health conditions in the occupied Palestinian territory, including east Jerusalem, and in the occupied Syrian Golan.”

UN Watch condemned the cynical politicization of the world’s top health agency at the expense of focusing on the COVID-19 pandemic and other vital global health priorities and emergencies.

WHO Ignores Syria, Yemen, Venezuela

Out of 34 items on the current world health assembly’s Agenda, only one, Item 25 targeting Israel, focused on a specific country.

There was no agenda item or resolution on any other country, conflict, civil war or political impasse—not on Syria, where hospitals and other medical infrastructure are repeatedly and deliberately bombed by Syrian and Russian forces; not on war-torn Yemen, where 18 million are in dire need of health assistance; and not on Venezuela, where the health system is in a state of collapse and 7 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance.

Session Falsely Accused Israel of Violating Palestinian & Syrian Health Rights

Today’s assault on Israel at the WHO promoted the lie that Israel is harming Palestinian health rights. The opposite is true.

Despite the fact that the Palestinians have their own health system, and under the Oslo II Peace Accord it is the Palestinian Authority which is responsible for vaccinating their population, Israel has vaccinated over 100,000 Palestinian workers since March as well as donating thousands of vaccine doses for Palestinian medical workers.

Israeli medical teams coordinated with Palestinian medical professionals to provide training and assistance. Israel transferred medical equipment and has trained dozens of Palestinian doctors, nurses and medical personnel from Gaza before the Palestinian Authority ceased coordination in May 2020, putting more pressure on their health care system during a pandemic.

Moreover, it’s particularly absurd for the WHO to enact a resolution effectively accusing Israel of violating the health rights of Syrians in the Golan, while the Director-General's report clearly states that they have full access to universal health care under the Israeli health maintenance organizations, including COVID testing, medical care, contact tracing and vaccination.

France in EU Minority That Supported Biased Resolution 

The vote was 82 to 14 in favor of the resolution, with 40 abstentions and 38 absent.

UN Watch applauded the Netherlands, Austria and Colombia for shifting their votes from Abstain last year to No today.  

Those that voted No like last year were the US, UK, Australia, Brazil, Cameroon, Canada, Czech Republic, Germany, Honduras, Hungary, and Israel.

UN Watch also welcomed the voting shifts of Poland, Malta and Monaco, which moved from Yes to Abstain.

However, amid a global pandemic, the minority of EU member states and other democracies who voted for the resolution should be ashamed, including France, Spain, Switzerland, Belgium, Portugal, Japan, India, Ireland, New Zealand and Luxembourg.

These countries have now encouraged the continued hijacking of the world's health priorities, and the diversion of precious time, money, and resources to fight global disease, in order to wage a political prosecution of Israel.

Anyone who has ever walked into an Israeli hospital or clinic knows that they provide world-class health care to thousands of Palestinian Arabs as well as to Syrians fleeing Assad.

In addition to voting against the decision, the US took the floor to object to the politicization of the forum.

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ISRAELI DRUZE OFFICER APPOINTED MILITARY SECRETARY

Video Of The Week - Druze's amazing loyalty to Israel - https://tinyurl.com/yxs96srn

Jerusalem Post, By Anna  Ahronheim   APRIL 11, 2019 - https://tinyurl.com/y6gfhvm6

 Col. Ala Abu Rukon has been appointed military secretary to the president of the State of Israel Reuven Rivlin, the IDF announced Thursday.
 

Abu Rukon, who is currently serving as the IDF military attaché to China, will replace Brig.-Gen Boaz Hershkovitz – who has served in the role for the past three years – and be promoted to the rank of Brigadier General.
 

He was appointed following a decision by Rivlin together with Prime Minister and Defense Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen Aviv Kochavi.
 

Congratulating Abu Rukon on his appointment, Rivlin said “he is an impressive and professional addition to the team of advisers at Beit HaNasi. I am confident that his experience and skills will further deepen the strong ties with the IDF and the whole security establishment.”
 

While Druze in the Golan don’t need to serve, those in the Galilee like Abu Rukon do serve. Over 85% of Druze voluntarily serve in the IDF with a large majority in combat positions or in special units and border police, with many reaching senior positions in the military and police.
 

The 47 year-old Druze resident of Usfiya holds a PhD in Middle East Studies from Bar-Ilan University and is a married father of four children.
 

Abu Rokun has served in the IDF for the past 25 years beginning as a soldier and commander in the Paratroopers Brigade, and continuing in a series of command posts in the Intelligence Branch for many years.
 

In addition, Abu Rukon has commanded the Havat Hashomer base which helps soldiers who are part of populations at risk.
 

In January, Rivlin visited the base and thanked the commanders for their hard work in dealing with “some of the most complex educational and command challenges.”
 

“Your determination not to give up on any soldier – ‘no soldier left behind’ – the persistence, the mental resilience required from you when you are sowing and reaping seeds of hope, are an example to us all,” he continued.
 

During his visit, Rivlin also asked soldiers who had criminal records to talk to their commanders and to begin the process of clearing their records and that he as President “will look at each application seriously.”

Abu Rukon is not the first member of a minority community to be appointed as military secretary to the President of Israel. Hassan Hassan, a retired brigadier general made history by being the first member of the Druze community to be appointed a military aide to the president of the State.  He was appointed by President Shimon Peres, and stayed on for two years with Rivlin.

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THE DRUZE AND THE MIDDLE EAST'S MINORITY PACT

Dr. Mordechai Kedar; June 19, 2015

It is rare for a country to have to rethink its strategic roadmap. Nevertheless, Israel may be approaching the point in time when it will have to reboot and restart its geo-strategic thinking, if that has not yet been done. In fact, that point in time is staring us in the face and we simply must think out of the box to see and address it, before a head-on collision shatters that very same box without our having plans prepared for a changing reality.

The catalysts that brought Israel to realize that there is a turning point are the Syrian Druze. Israel must, and I repeat, must, do everything and even beyond everything, to help the Druze minority in Syria survive as it faces the Islamist forces who intend to destroy it.  

Whether it is Islamic state or Jabhat al Nusra who are preparing the "Final Solution" for the Druze in Syria is of no matter. When Islamic State overcomes Jabhat al Nusra, any understanding Israel has made with this organization will vaporize exactly like the ones Israel signed with the Syrian regime.

There are about 700,000 Druze in Syria, concentrated in three main areas: the Mountain of the Druze (Druze Mountain) in southern Syria adjoining the Jordanian border, the Khader enclave on the southeastern slopes of the Hermon east of Majdal Shams, and the Aleppo-Idlib region in northern Syria, near the Turkish border. No one expects Israel to reach northern Syria to help the Druze who live there, but many of those who live in Southern Syria – on Druze Mountain and in the Khader enclave – expect Israel to do something to prevent the ISIS butcher knives from reaching their necks.

Their brothers in Israel are citizens with equal rights and duties, serving in the IDF – in combat units for the most part. The proportion of Druze who volunteer for combat units is greater than that of Jewish youth. The silence of the military cemeteries in Druze villages shouts the oath of loyalty they have sworn, the pact of blood that this wonderful group has made with the Jewish people in its resurrected homeland. And they are the brothers, cousins and in-laws of the Druze in Syria.

The Druze in Israel are deeply anxious about the danger that threatens their brothers in Syria if Islamic State conquers the southern part of the country. They know for certain that the lot of the Druze will echo the lot of the Yazidi in Iraq; the men will be slaughtered and the women sold in the marketplace as slaves. The Druze in Israel fear that the world will view the suffering of their brothers with equanimity and will not act decisively and rapidly, the way it failed to do when ISIS came close to totally destroying the Yazidi on Mount Sinjar in Iraq. The reality of the past year makes every scenario – even the most horrendous ones imaginable – a real possibility.

The Druze in Israel say to themselves quite simply: "if the residents of Druze Mountain were Jews, the State of Israel would do everything to protect and rescue them. If there is a pact of blood between the Jews and the Druze, then it is being tested now on Druze Mountain and the Khader enclave."  Their reasoning is also simple: The pact of blood cannot be one-sided, where the Druze go out to battle, are killed and wounded for the Jewish State. Either it is a two way pact, in which the state goes out to save the Druze who are under a clear and present threat, the most immediate and severe ever, or it is no pact at all.

The situation in Syria forces Israel to take a stand, as President Rivlin said eloquently in his call to the Secretary General of the UN to protect the Druze in Syria. Except that words are not going to save the Druze, only actions can do that, and the more decisive these actions are, the more effect they will have.

Israel must view Druze Mountain as vital territory to all intents and purposes, and in the same vein, view those living on it as blood brothers. There were times when Israel did not come to the aid of those who had helped it (the Southern Lebanese Army - Tzadal - for example), but now, Israel must take every step necessary to prove to the Druze that it stands faithful to them no less than it is to Jews, in Israel and everywhere else. This is a moral stand with civilian, political and security implications.

There are people in Israel who say "Why get involved in saving the Druze in Syria, when they were loyal subjects of Assad for years, both Hafez and Bashar, and even acted against us more than once.The Druze in the Golan Heights refused Israeli citizenship so they never became Israelis." My answer: The Druze in the Golan were afraid, after the 1967 war, that Israel would return them along with the Golan one of these days. And then they would find themselves in the torture chambers of the Syrian secret service, so in order to protect themselves from those torture chambers they remained loyal to Syria. Who can blame them?

Israel can take several steps, all or some of them, depending on developments on the ground:

1. Israel can create a military unit, made up of minorities, whose soldiers are Druze, and who will go to help on Druze Mountain if and when the need arises. Druze fighters doing compulsory service, career officers and reservists who normally belong to other units can be moved into this unit. It is important to form the unit and begin to train its fighters right away, so that if the need arises they can be sent to the battlefield as soon as the decision to do so is reached. A Druze project manager, preferably high-ranking, should push for the wherewithal to establish the unit, man it, and receive equipment, weapons and training.

2. Israel should be making plans for attacking concentrations of ISIS fighters near Druze Mountain from the air.

3. In the event that the Syrian regime collapses and the country falls apart, Israel must immediately take over the area tangent to the Jordan-Syrian border in order to create a dry land corridor between the Golan and the Druze Mountain. This corridor will make it possible to transfer armed forces as needed to protect Druze Mountain.

4. Israel must set up a field hospital in the Golan to offer medical care for the Druze, in order to keep them separate from hostile forces.

5. Israel must organize transfer of civil and military aid (arms, medicine, food and funds) to the Druze fighters on Druze Mountain, as needed.

Israel cannot stay on the sidelines when the Druze of Syria are facing extermination. This would be immoral, inhuman and self-destructive. We will pay the price for doing nothing when we look in the mirror and search for the moral person reflected there.

The Minority Pact

The Druze are not the last of these problems, because in Syria, Iraq and every other place the Jihadists have conquered, each minority lives in fear of being the next on line. This is a perfectly justified fear, and encompasses the Druze, Yazidi, Christians, Alawites, Zoroastrians, Bahais, Sabians, Mandeans - all of them non-Muslim, but also the Shiites, the Hezbollah and their people, all of them living in fear of the Sunni Jihadists as well. 

Israel must work to establish the "Middle East Minorities Pact" which will place all these minorities under one umbrella, even if they once fought each other, as the Shiite Hezbollah and Jews do.  The logic behind this is the fact that they are all facing the same enemy and must work together to defeat it. If they don't, they will weaken themselves by constant infighting and bring about their own end.

This may seem delusional, but as times goes by, it becomes clear that this most large and expanding enemy will force all the minorities to join forces against it.

Israel must find a secret channel for talking to Hezbollah, the most problematic of the minorities because of its blood soaked past and its hatred for the Lebanese Shiites.

We are left with only one question; what will Iran's stand be vis a vis a coalition of minorities which has Israel on the same bench as Hezbollah? In my opinion, Iran will not prevent the coalition from forming because it is going to be the only way to ensure the continued existence of the Shiites in Lebanon, a group whose continued existence is more important to the Iranians than the destruction of Israel.