Syria's Forgotten Minority—Why the Druze Deserve Our Protection and Attention
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
As an Israeli Druze woman serving as a minister at the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C., I feel compelled to share what is happening to my people in Suwayda, Syria.
The Druze of Syria, the largest concentration of Druze in the Middle East, numbering more than 700,000 people, are facing a brutal and systematic assault. Despite their relatively small numbers, the Syrian Druze played a foundational role in shaping modern Syria, just as we play a significant role in Israel.
A convoy of Syrian military and security forces passes a sign for Suwayda, Syria on July 15, 2025.
A convoy of Syrian military and security forces passes a sign for Suwayda, Syria on July 15, 2025.
Stringer/Getty Images
They led the Great Syrian Revolt against French colonial rule, fighting for liberalism, the rule of law, and human rights for all. This religious minority known for its dignity, neutrality, resiliency, and peaceful resistance is now being targeted by Jihadi militias supported by the Syrian regime, with tanks artillery, and heavy weapons.
As a human being I am watching history repeat itself—in real time—through the footage of this horrendous ethnic cleansing.
The atrocities of October 7 in Israel did not occur in a vacuum.
We have warned the world for years about this growing wave of radical extremism. It has targeted the Yazidis in Iraq, the Alawites in Syria, Christians across the Levant—and now, it is butchering innocent Druze civilians: women, children, and the elderly.
Homes are being shelled, families displaced, hospitals are being bombed, and religious sites and symbols desecrated, led by the Syrian regime with the blessing of President Abu Mohammad al-Jolani. And yet once again—the world has remained largely silent in the face of the genocide taking place against my people.
Let me be clear: The Suwayda massacre is not an internal Syrian issue.
As we have seen before, this has escalated into international sectarian war by radical Jihadists against minority groups that do not ascribe to their version of fundamentalism. As the only democracy in the Middle East that actively protects minority rights, Israel has not stood idly by. Israel is committed to preventing continued harm from being inflicted on the Druze in Syria.
As the state of Israel, we are committed to protecting the Druze minority and maintaining the strategic security buffer on Israel's northern border with Syria in the Golan.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu firmly instructed the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to protect the Druze community in Syria and to attack strongholds of al-Jolani's regime in Damascus. Together with the minister of Defense, the PM publicly committed to eliminating the radical forces that attacked the Druze and called for a full withdrawal from Suwayda.
We are determined to deter the regime from harming the Druze, by ensuring the full demilitarization of the border with Syria, acting to defend our common values, and for the protection of minority groups. Everyone should know that the Druze of Syria stand as the last symbol of pluralism and minority diversity in the Arab-majority region.
If Suwayda collapses, Israel and Jordan face an immediate Jihadi threat on their border. Therefore, I urge you to speak out, clearly and urgently. Join Israel in condemning the violence and the targeted persecution of this minority group and in calling for an immediate withdrawal of Syrian forces from Druze Syrian villages. We must see an immediate cessation of the siege on all essential humanitarian necessities and a humanitarian corridor created between Syria and Jordan.
Let me conclude by quoting the people of Suwayda: "Don't let this turn into another forgotten atrocity. Human rights are not selective. Minority lives are not optional."
Sawsan Natour-Hasson is the minister of public diplomacy at the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C. She served as the director of the Middle East Economic Affairs Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Israel. Natour-Hasson has held a variety of posts in the Foreign Ministry in Israel and around the world, including deputy chief of mission in Athens and in Sofia. Prior to that, Natour-Hasson was an attorney specializing in civil and labor law. She has been awarded the Prize of Excellence for her work at the Foreign Ministry. Natour-Hasson holds LL.B. and LL.M. law degrees from Haifa University. She is Druze and lives with her family in Daliyat Al-Karmel.
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
21 minutes ago
- New York Post
US proposal calls for Hezbollah to disarm by end of year, Israel to withdraw from Lebanon: report
The US has presented a plan calling for Hezbollah's full demilitarization by the end of the year, along with Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon, officials said. Lebanese lawmakers are reviewing the plan submitted Thursday by President Trump's envoy, Tom Barrack, which seeks to 'extend and stabilize' the fragile cease-fire between Hezbollah and Israel following last year's war. 'The urgency of this proposal is underscored by the increasing number of complaints regarding Israeli violations of the current ceasefire, including airstrikes and cross-border operations, which risk triggering a collapse of the fragile status quo,' the proposal read, according to Reuters. 5 A US plan to cement the cease-fire between Hezbollah militants and Israel calls on the terror group to disarm by year's end. AFP via Getty Images 5 US special envoy Tom Barrack submitted the plan to Lebanon's government, tasking lawmakers to oversee the disarmament process. AFP via Getty Images The document calls on Beirut to publicly announce its commitment to disarm Hezbollah by Dec. 31, 2025, which would be partnered with Israel ending all ground, air and sea military operations in Lebanon. The Jewish state currently controls five points in the nation's southern half, with Israeli officials reiterating that the buffer was needed to hinder attacks from the Iran-backed terror group. The second phase of the proposal required Lebanon to oversee the disarmament process within 60 days, with the lawmakers tasked with providing a detailed plan for the army to take control of all the weapons. Under this phase, Israel would begin withdrawing its forces from the five points, with the Jewish state also agreeing to free Lebanese prisoners who were taken into custody during last year's war, a process that will be overseen by the International Committee of the Red Cross. 5 The deal would also see the Israeli military fully withdraw from southern Lebanon. IDF The next phase, to be completed within 90 days, would see the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces, with a financial plan put in place to help rebuild the infrastructure destroyed during the war. By phase four, the US plan calls for all of Hezbollah's heavy weapons, including missiles and drones, to be dismantled. After all the heavy weapons are forfeited, the US will convene with France, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and other ally nations to 'implement President Trump's vision for the return of Lebanon as a prosperous and viable country.' 5 The terror group has said it will not acknowledge any calls from at home or abroad for Hezbollah to lay down its arms. AFP via Getty Images 5 A Hezbollah supporter waves the terror group's flag over Beirut. AP Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam had called on the military this week to develop a plan to oversee the restriction of arms for Hezbollah, whose war with Israel devastated the country's southern half. Hezbollah — which had suffered thousands of losses in the conflict with Israel, including the death of its founder Hassan Nasrallah and the majority of its top brass — has repeatedly rejected all calls for it to demilitarize. The terror group warned Beirut that it would not acknowledge any such orders from the government, warning lawmakers that they were committing a 'grave sin,' according to the AFP. The White House didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from The Post. With Post wires
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
US plan sees Hezbollah disarmed by year-end, Israeli withdrawal
A plan submitted by U.S. presidential envoy Tom Barrack is the most detailed yet for disarming the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement. BEIRUT − The United States has presented Lebanon with a proposal for disarming Hezbollah by the end of the year, along with ending Israel's military operations in the country and the withdrawal of its troops from five positions in south Lebanon, according to a copy of a Lebanese cabinet agenda reviewed by Reuters. The plan, submitted by President Donald Trump's envoy to the region, Tom Barrack, and being discussed at a Lebanese cabinet meeting on August 7, sets out the most detailed steps yet for disarming the Iran-backed Hezbollah group, which has rejected mounting calls to disarm since last year's devastating war with Israel. The Lebanese information minister said following the cabinet meeting on Thursday that the cabinet approved the objectives of Barrack's plan but did not discuss it in full detail. More: Netanyahu wants full military control of Gaza, Hamas calls it a 'coup' The objectives of the U.S. proposal include phasing out the armed presence of non-state actors including Hezbollah, deploying Lebanese forces to key border and internal areas, ensuring Israel's withdrawal from the five positions, resolving prisoner issues through indirect talks, and permanently demarcating Lebanon's borders with Israel and Syria. The U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declined to comment, while the defence ministry did not immediately respond. Hezbollah had no immediate comment on the proposal. Israel dealt major blows to Hezbollah in an offensive last year, the climax of a conflict that began in October 2023 when the Lebanese group opened fire at Israeli positions at the frontier, declaring support for its militant Palestinian ally Hamas at the start of the Gaza war. The U.S. proposal aims to "extend and stabilize" a ceasefire agreement between Lebanon and Israel brokered in November. "The urgency of this proposal is underscored by the increasing number of complaints regarding Israeli violations of the current ceasefire, including airstrikes and cross-border operations, which risk triggering a collapse of the fragile status quo," it said. Phase 1 of the plan requires the Beirut government to issue a decree within 15 days committing to Hezbollah's full disarmament by December 31, 2025. In this phase, Israel would also cease ground, air and sea military operations. Phase 2 requires Lebanon to begin implementing the disarmament plan within 60 days, with the government approving "a detailed (Lebanese army) deployment plan to support the plan to bring all arms under the authority of the state". This plan will specify disarmament targets. During Phase 2, Israel would begin withdrawing from positions it holds in south Lebanon and Lebanese prisoners held by Israel would be released in coordination with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). During Phase 3, within 90 days, Israel will withdraw from the final two of the five points it holds, and funding will be secured to initiate rubble removal in Lebanon and infrastructure rehabilitation in preparation for reconstruction. In Phase 4, within 120 days, Hezbollah's remaining heavy weapons must be dismantled, including missiles and drones. In Phase 4, the United States, Saudi Arabia, France, Qatar and other friendly states will organise an economic conference to support the Lebanese economy and reconstruction and to "implement President Trump's vision for the return of Lebanon as a prosperous and viable country".
Newsweek
an hour ago
- Newsweek
Trump Admin Targets GOP-Led State for Tuition Break to Illegal Immigrants
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced Thursday that it filed a challenge this week to an Oklahoma state law that requires providing in-state tuition rates to illegal immigrants, arguing that the practice is "discriminatory" to American citizens. Newsweek reached out to Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt, the Oklahoma House Democratic Caucus and the Oklahoma House Republican Caucus by email on Thursday for comment. Why It Matters President Donald Trump has directed his administration to limit benefits for immigrants in the United States illegally, including educational benefits. The Oklahoma law requires universities to provide in-state tuition rates to any student—regardless of immigrant status—as long as they have graduated from a public or private high school in the state and resided in the state while attending classes or high school for at least two years prior to graduation. The Higher Education Portal determined through analysis that 23 states and Washington, D.C., provide in-state tuition rates and financial aid benefits to undocumented students, although about a half-dozen of those states provide only limited access. Two college graduates make their way up a stairway and into the sun in graduation robes and hats. Two college graduates make their way up a stairway and into the sun in graduation robes and hats. Getty Images, Stock Photo What To Know The DOJ in its Tuesday filing alleged that the law as written is unconstitutional as it extends a right to non-citizens that is not afforded to American citizens as well—in other words, the same rate is not offered to out-of-state American citizens. The filing argues that the "unequal treatment of Americans is squarely prohibited and preempted by federal law" and is squarely contradicted by a constitution's supremacy clause and federal law that illegal immigrants "shall not be eligible on the basis of residence within a State . . . for any postsecondary education benefit unless a citizen or national of the United States is eligible for such a benefit." Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond quickly filed a joint motion in support of the DOJ, calling the Oklahoma law "discriminatory and unlawful." The administration sued Texas and Kentucky for similar statutes, enforcing executive orders directing agencies to withhold benefits from undocumented immigrants and to challenge state laws that provide such benefits. A federal judge ultimately sided with the Trump administration in the case of the Texas suit, which similarly saw state Attorney General Ken Paxton file a joint motion in support of the federal effort. U.S. District Judge Reed O'Connor ruled that the Texas policy was "unconstitutional and invalid" for someone "not lawfully present in the United States," providing a potential preview of how the Oklahoma case might unfold. What People Are Saying Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond in a statement, in part: "Today marks the end of a long-standing exploitation of Oklahoma taxpayers, who for many years have subsidized colleges and universities as they provide unlawful benefits to illegal immigrants in the form of in-state tuition," Drummond said. "Rewarding foreign nationals who are in our country illegally with lower tuition costs that are not made available to out-of-state American citizens is not only wrong—it is discriminatory and unlawful." Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt earlier this year, on X: "I expect tuition to pay for education—not indoctrination. Our kids deserve an education that equips them with real-world skills and sets them up for success in the workforce. Universities should focus on real education, not activism disguised as curriculum." What Happens Next The case will go before the Eastern District of Oklahoma to rule on the state statute, which will determine the practice going forward for students.
