Latest news with #LebaneseDruze
The National
30-04-2025
- Politics
- The National
Israel carried out warning strike on 'extremists' preparing to attack Druze in Syria, Netanyahu says
The Israeli military has carried out a warning strike against 'extremists' preparing to attack members of Syria's Druze minority in a Damascus suburb, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday. The strike followed an overnight attack on Druze areas of Sahnaya, a large suburb of the Syrian capital, by militants from the nearby areas of Hajar Al Aswad, Mouaddamiyeh and Balbila. Mr Netanyahu said in a joint statement with Defence Minister Israel Katz that the Israeli military 'carried out a warning operation and attacked an extremist group that was organising to continue attacking the Druze population in the town'. 'A serious message was also conveyed to the Syrian regime – Israel expects it to act to prevent harm to the Druze,' they said. An official from Syria's ruling Hayat Tahrir Al Sham, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Israeli drones struck Sahnaya and its surroundings several times. A car and a security position were among the targets, he said, without elaborating. Israel's military later said that troops had been instructed to hit "targets belonging to the Syrian regime" if violence against Druze communities continues. Syrian state news agency Sana confirmed that Israeli strikes had taken place in the Sahnaya The areas around Sahnaya are controlled by former rebel brigades allied with HTS, a group formerly linked to Al Qaeda that led the rebel offensive that toppled president Bashar Al Assad in December and formed the current government. The official said that a delegation comprised of senior members of the Druze spiritual leadership arrived to Damascus on Tuesday and began talks with the government. He expected the situation to be contained by late Wednesday. The Interior Ministry said 16 people were killed in 'the targeting of civilians and security forces by outlaw groups' in the suburb, and that reinforcements had been sent to the area. Hussam Al Tahhan, a local police official, said that several parties had intervened to try to stop the bloodshed but failed, without naming them. Lebanese Druze leader Walid Joumblatt, who had opened a channel with the new government as soon as Mr Al Assad was toppled, said Israel is trying to "use" the Druze to create sectarian strife in Syria but that the authorities in Damascus should start a transparent investigation into the killings. Clashes killed 12 people in another Druze-populated Damascus suburb on Tuesday. The attack on Jaramana by HTS-affiliated militias came amid anger over a video showing a Druze leader appearing to criticise the Prophet Mohammed. The government later said the video was fake. Eight of the dead in the two attacks were members of Syria's minority Druze community, which Israel vowed to defend after HTS-affiliated forces attacked Jaramana in early March. Rayyan Maarouf, a researcher at the Syrian Suwayda 24 network of citizen journalists, said the dead in Sahnaya included a Druze fighter who was defending the area and a Druze civilian, as well as 10 members of the attacking forces drawn from militant brigades based in towns on the outskirts of Damascus. Mr Maarouf said that although Syria's Druze are not pro-Israel, the Israeli intervention could deter pro-government forces from further attacks. President Ahmad Al Shara is seeking to consolidate the new government's control over the country in the face of resistance from minorities. At least 1,300 members of the Alawite sect, mainly civilians, were killed in their coastal heartland on March 8 and March 9 as state security forces and allied militias responded to attacks by Assad loyalists. Druze representatives agreed to integrate the sect's militias into the state forces in a deal signed on March 10. Another deal with the country's more powerful Kurds stalled after their representatives called for decentralisation of power. 'This is not the way to apply political pressure. It could result in massacres,' Mr Maarouf told The National by phone from Suweida city, pointing to the continued killing of Alawites. The minority sect, to which the former president belongs, dominated Sunni-majority Syria during more than five decades of Assad family rule. The Sunni political ascendancy after the overthrow of Mr Al Assad has changed Middle Eastern power dynamics to the disadvantage of Shiite-majority Iran and Russia, the main backers of the former regime. The Druze are a transnational minority of about one million people, present mainly in Syria, Israel, Lebanon and Jordan. In Syria they are concentrated on the southern outskirts of Damascus and the southern province of Suweida, near the border with Jordan. The sect's main focus has been survival amid rise of religious forces in the region, although those in Syria staged a civil disobedience movement against Mr Al Assad for more than a year before the rebel offensive forced him to flee the country. Mr Maarouf said that villages in Suweida have also come attack by militants firing mortar rounds from the nearby province of Deraa and that hundreds of Druze students have been either evacuated from or forced out of university campuses across the country. 'The Druze could use even intervention from devils now,' he said. 'They are afraid that what occurred on the coast will happen to them. It is very regrettable that the government is supporting an assault on a whole sect.' A member of the inner circle of Sheikh Hikmat Al Hijri, the spiritual leader of Syrian Druze, declined to comment on the attacks in Sahnaya and Jaramana but said the government could easily have prevented militants from gathering around the two suburbs. Sheikh Hikmat has criticised the new government as being led by 'extremists' and has opened channels with Israel in a quest for protection. Over the past month, the government has recruited hundreds of Druze from Suweida to its new security troops. Druze militias loyal to Sheikh Hikmat have responded by raising their presence in the streets of Suweida, and patrolling the province's borders, residents said.
Ya Libnan
30-03-2025
- Politics
- Ya Libnan
Lebanon's Jumblatt accuses Israel of exploiting the Druze minority in Syria
File: Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblatt shakes hands with Syria's leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, also known as Abu Mohammed al-Golani, after the ousting of Syria's Bashar al-Assad, in Damascus, Syria, December 22, 2024. So far Golani has been saying the right things. The question on everyone's mind is: Are these words just to appease or for real? If for real will his fighters should be following his directive. The last thing the Syrians want to see is another dictator like Bashar al-Assad REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblatt has accused Israel of exploiting followers of his minority faith in Syria as part of a broader plan to divide the Middle East along sectarian lines. Israel wants 'to implement the plan it has always had… which is to break up the region into confessional entities and extend the chaos,' said Jumblatt, a key figure in Lebanese politics for more than four decades. 'They want to annihilate Gaza, then it will be the West Bank's turn… they are trying to destabilise Syria, through the Druze but also others,' he told AFP in an interview Wednesday. 'It's a dangerous game.' Israel has been making overtures towards Syria's Druze community since Islamist-led rebels ousted longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December after more than 13 years of war. Since then, Israel has sent troops into the UN-patrolled buffer zone along the armistice line on the Golan Heights, and war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has reported regular Israeli incursions deeper into southern Syria. The Druze faith has followers in Israel, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria, including the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights. They account for about three percent of Syria's population and are concentrated in the southern province of Sweida. This month, Israeli government spokesman David Mencer said 10,000 humanitarian aid packages had been sent to 'the Druze community in battle areas of Syria' over the past few weeks. 'Israel has a bold alliance with our Druze brothers and sisters,' he told journalists. Israel also authorised the first pilgrimage in decades by Syrian Druze clerics to a revered shrine in Israel. Defence Minister Israel Katz said Israel would not allow Syria's new rulers 'to harm the Druze', following a deadly clash between government-linked forces and Druze fighters in the suburbs of Damascus. Syria's Druze leaders rejected Katz's warning and declared their loyalty to a united Syria. Druze representatives have been negotiating with Syria's new authorities on an agreement that would see their armed groups integrated into the new national army. The talks had almost reached completion but 'Israeli pressure' on some parties prevented the accord from being finalised, a source close to the negotiations told AFP, requesting anonymity as the matter is sensitive. Jumblatt noted that during the French mandate in the 1920s and 1930s, 'Syria was divided into four entities: an Alawite state, a Druze state, the state of Damascus and the state of Aleppo', the latter two being Sunni Muslim. 'The Druze, led by Sultan Pasha Al Atrash were able to prevent the division of Syria' by launching a revolt against the French, and the plan later collapsed, he said. He expressed hope that any new division of Syria could be avoided, appealing to Arab leaders to support interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa. – 'Criminal' – Jumblatt in December was the first Lebanese official to meet Sharaa after his Islamist group spearheaded the offensive that ousted Assad. Sharaa told Jumblatt that Syria would no longer exert 'negative interference' in Lebanon, after Assad's dynasty was accused of destabilising Lebanon for years and assassinating numerous Lebanese officials, including Jumblatt's father. Kamal Jumblatt, who founded the Progressive Socialist Party and opposed Assad's father Hafez over his troops' intervention in the Lebanese civil war, was killed in Mount Lebanon in 1977. This month, Syrian security forces arrested former intelligence officer Ibrahim Huweija, suspected of numerous killings, including that of Jumblatt's father. 'He's a big criminal, he also committed crimes against the Syrian people and should be tried in Syria,' Jumblatt said. Lebanon's new authorities have been under pressure since a devastating war between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah group, an Assad ally, Jumblatt said. Syrian Druze leader The leader of Syria's Druze, Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri, has condemned Israel's invasion of Syria and said his country needs to maintain its social and territorial unity. Speaking to Middle East Eye in an exclusive interview from his home in Qanawat, a town in southern Syria's Sweida province, Hijri said: 'The Israeli invasion concerns me and I reject it The religious leader added that contacts between Syria's Druze community and the new authorities in Damascus led by Ahmed al-Sharaa have been positive. 'But we are waiting for accomplishments from the new government, not just positive words,' he said. AFP/ YAHOO
Al Arabiya
27-03-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Lebanon Druze leader accuses Israel of exploiting minority in Syria
Lebanese Druze leader Walid Joumblatt has accused Israel of exploiting followers of his minority faith in Syria as part of a broader plan to divide the Middle East along sectarian lines. Israel wants 'to implement the plan it has always had... which is to break up the region into confessional entities and extend the chaos,' said Joumblatt, a key figure in Lebanese politics for more than four decades. 'They want to annihilate Gaza, then it will be the West Bank's turn... they are trying to destabilize Syria, through the Druze but also others,' he told AFP in an interview Wednesday. 'It's a dangerous game.' Israel has been making overtures towards Syria's Druze community since Islamist-led rebels ousted longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December after more than 13 years of war. Since then, Israel has sent troops into the UN-patrolled buffer zone along the armistice line on the Golan Heights, and war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has reported regular Israeli incursions deeper into southern Syria. The Druze faith has followers in Israel, Lebanon and Syria, including the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights. They account for about three percent of Syria's population and are concentrated in the southern province of Sweida. This month, Israeli government spokesman David Mencer said 10,000 humanitarian aid packages had been sent to 'the Druze community in battle areas of Syria' over the past few weeks. 'Israel has a bold alliance with our Druze brothers and sisters,' he told journalists. Prevent the division Israel also authorized the first pilgrimage in decades by Syrian Druze clerics to a revered shrine in Israel. Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israel would not allow Syria's new rulers 'to harm the Druze,' following a deadly clash between government-linked forces and Druze fighters in the suburbs of Damascus. Druze leaders rejected Katz's warning and declared their loyalty to a united Syria. Druze representatives have been negotiating with Syria's new authorities on an agreement that would see their armed groups integrated into the new national army. The talks had almost reached completion but 'Israeli pressure' on some parties prevented the accord from being finalized, a source close to the negotiations told AFP, requesting anonymity as the matter is sensitive. Joumblatt noted that during the French mandate in the 1920s and 1930s, 'Syria was divided into four entities: an Alawite state, a Druze state, the state of Damascus and the state of Aleppo,' the latter two being Sunni Muslim. 'The Druze, with the other Syrian nationalists, were able to prevent the division of Syria' by launching a revolt and the plan later collapsed, he said. He expressed hope that any new division of Syria could be avoided, appealing to Arab leaders to support interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa. Criminal Joumblatt in December was the first Lebanese official to meet Sharaa after his group spearheaded the offensive that ousted Assad. Sharaa told Joumblatt that Syria would no longer exert 'negative interference' in Lebanon, after Assad's dynasty was accused of destabilizing Lebanon for years and assassinating numerous Lebanese officials, including Joumblatt's father. Kamal Joumblatt, who founded the Progressive Socialist Party and opposed Assad's father Hafez over his troops' intervention in the Lebanese civil war, was killed near the Syrian border in 1977. This month, Syrian security forces arrested former intelligence officer Ibrahim Huweija, suspected of numerous killings including that of Joumblatt's father. 'He's a big criminal, he also committed crimes against the Syrian people and should be tried in Syria,' Joumblatt said. Lebanon's new authorities have been under pressure since a devastating war between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah group, an Assad ally, Joumblatt said. 'The Americans want Lebanon to normalize ties with Israel,' he said. Under a November ceasefire, Hezbollah was to withdraw fighters from the border area and dismantle its military infrastructure there. The Israeli army was also to withdraw but troops are still deployed in five positions inside Lebanon that it deems strategic.
Memri
24-03-2025
- Politics
- Memri
Lebanese Druze Leader Wiam Wahhab: Who Else Will Protect Us Druze Besides the Israelis? We Supported the Sunni Muslim Brotherhood in Palestine, Only to Be Slaughtered by Them in Syria
Lebanese Druze leader Wiam Wahhab discussed Israel's intervention on behalf of the Druze in Syria, during an interview with Roula Nasr on March 12, 2025. He argued that no one else would protect the Druze but the Israelis, questioning whether they are expected to be slaughtered. Wahhab expressed support for Arab nations and Sunnis but criticized countries like Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Al-Azhar University for not protecting the Druze despite their previous support. He also stressed that Hizbullah cannot continue supporting the Sunni Muslim Brotherhood, particularly Hamas, without assurances that Sunnis will not persecute Shiites and Druze. Wahhab pointed out Hizbullah's sacrifices for the Sunni cause in Palestine, only to have the Sunnis turn against them later in Syria, and questioned whether the Shiites and Druze are expected to liberate Palestine, only to face persecution afterward. He further criticized Hizbullah's alliance with the Muslim Brotherhood, emphasizing that the only significant movement in the Sunni world is the Muslim Brotherhood, with groups like HTS being rooted in it. Wahhab argued that with many moderate Sunni countries, it remains unclear why Hizbullah continues to align with the Brotherhood or Iran.
Arab News
06-03-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
16 killed in ‘most violent' Syria unrest since Assad ouster: monitor
'Our forces in the city of Jableh managed to arrest the criminal General Ibrahim Huweija,' SANA said Huweija, who headed air force intelligence from 1987 to 2002, has long been a suspect in the 1977 murder of Lebanese Druze leader Kamal Bek JumblattDAMASCUS: Gunmen loyal to Syria's Bashar Assad killed 16 security personnel on Thursday, a war monitor said, in attacks it described as the 'most violent' since the longtime president's fighting took place in the Mediterranean coastal province of Latakia, the heartland of the ousted president's Alawite minority who were considered bastions of support during his the operation, security forces captured and arrested a former head of air force intelligence, one of the Assad family's most trusted security agencies, state news agency SANA Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the clashes in the coastal town of Jableh and adjacent villages were 'the most violent attacks against the new authorities since Assad was toppled' in said most of the security personnel killed were from the former rebel bastion of Idlib in the northwest.'Our forces in the city of Jableh managed to arrest the criminal General Ibrahim Huweija,' SANA said. 'He is accused of hundreds of assassinations during the era of the criminal Hafez Assad,' Bashar Assad's father and who headed air force intelligence from 1987 to 2002, has long been a suspect in the 1977 murder of Lebanese Druze leader Kamal Bek Jumblatt. His son and successor Walid Jumblatt retweeted the news of his arrest with the comment: 'Allahu Akbar (God is Greatest).'At least three of the gunmen in Jableh were killed, the Britain-based Observatory provincial security director said security forces clashed with gunmen loyal to an Assad-era special forces commander in another village in Latakia, after authorities reportedly launched helicopter strikes.'The armed groups that our security forces were clashing with in the Latakia countryside were affiliated with the war criminal Suhail Al-Hassan,' the security director told 'The Tiger,' Hassan led the country's special forces and was frequently described as Assad's 'favorite soldier.' He was responsible for key military advances by the Assad government in Syrian Observatory for Human Rights had earlier reported 'strikes launched by Syrian helicopters on armed men in the village of Beit Ana and the surrounding forests, coinciding with artillery strikes on a neighboring village.'SANA reported that militias loyal to the ousted president had opened fire on 'members and equipment of the defense ministry' near the village, killing one security force member and wounding broadcaster Al Jazeera reported that its photographer Riad Al-Hussein was wounded in the clashes but that he was doing well.A defense ministry source later told SANA that large military reinforcements were being deployed to the Jableh leaders later called in a statement on Facebook for 'peaceful protests' in response to the helicopter strikes, which they said had targeted 'the homes of civilians.'The security forces imposed overnight curfews on Alawite-populated areas, including the port city of Tartus and third city Homs, SANA other cities around the country, crowds gathered 'in support of the security forces,' it erupted after residents of Beit Ana, the birthplace of Suhail Al-Hassan, prevented security forces from arresting a person wanted for trading arms, the Observatory forces subsequently launched a campaign in the area, resulting in clashes with gunmen, it on Thursday, large groups of young men, some bearing arms, gathered in Idlib, in support of the security forces fighting in Latakia, the Observatory broadcast over the loudspeakers of mosques called for 'jihad' against the gunmen, it tensions erupted after at least four civilians were killed during a security operation in Latakia, the monitor said on forces launched the campaign in the Daatour neighborhood of the city on Tuesday after an ambush by 'members of the remnants of Assad militias' killed two security personnel, state media rebels led by Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham launched a lightning offensive that toppled Assad on December country's new security forces have since carried out extensive campaigns seeking to root out Assad loyalists from his former and organizations have reported violations during those campaigns, including the seizing of homes, field executions and new authorities have described the violations as 'isolated incidents' and vowed to pursue those responsible.
