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Source: https://www.jns.org/druze-sovereignty-in-syria-is-in-americas-and-israels-best-interest/
Druze Autonomy in Syria Is in America's and Israel's Best Interest
(JNS) Khalifa Khalifa and Brett Kaufman - The events of the past several weeks in Syria represent a once-in-an-era opportunity for the Free World. Druze militias in southern Syria announced unification under a new "military council of Suwayda," which prompted other armed Druze groups to join as well. The Druze are Arabs who split off from Islam about a thousand years ago and are considered heretical to Islam. Muslims have persecuted the Druze as infidels for centuries. In Israel, the Druze have been embraced as allies and full citizens, serving in the highest positions in the Israel Defense Forces and government. The integration of the Druze of Israel is a testament to the Western liberal pluralism of Israeli society. The Druze homeland of Jabal al-Druze ("Druze Mountain") lies in territory within the Suwayda, Quneitra and Daraa governates of the Hauran region. The majority of Syrian Druze are avowedly pro-Israel and have resisted Islamist attacks for years. With Bashar Assad's blessing, Islamic State terrorists attacked Suwayda on July 25, 2018, taking dozens of women and children hostage, and beheading all the captured men and a teenage girl. More than 250 Druze were slaughtered in the attack. In 2015, HTS members massacred the Druze of Idlib in northwestern Syria. Predictably, the world is outraged over Israeli self-defense incursions into Syria while ignoring Turkish seizures of Syrian territory in the north. The U.S. should recognize Druze autonomy, publicly state that the Syrian army must stay out of their homeland, and fund and arm the Druze without committing American troops on the ground. Israel has already demanded that Syrian leader Julani's jihadist army stay out of southern Syria. The Druze will remain second-class citizens under Arab or Muslim rule. Supporting an autonomous Druze zone - populated by ideologically motivated anti-jihadists who want to fight for their own freedom and keep Syrian, Turkish and Lebanese Islamist autocrats in check - is greatly in the American interest. Khalifa Khalifa is a Druze Middle East policy analyst who has served as an adviser to the IDF on Palestinian affairs. Brett Kaufman is assistant professor of the Classics at the University of Illinois.