Israel has instructed its military to prepare to defend the Druze majority city of Jaramana, located on the outskirts of Damascus. On March 1, Saturday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz issued the directive after reports that Syrian regime forces were clashing with local Druze gunmen. On Monday, IDF targeted three military site in Qardaha in northern Syria in order to protect Isareli citizens.
A declaration by Katz’s office summarize the Israeli government position, threatening the Syrian government with hurting the Druze citizens. “We won’t let the extreme Islamic regime in Syria harm the Druze. If the regime hurts the Druze, it will be hit by us,” Katz declared. The declaration reiterated Israel’s protection of the Druze community. The group is a minority community in Syria with a good amount of presence in southern Syria and Israel’s Golan Heights.
After the rise of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) to power, the fear of minority persecution in the country has increased substantially. Ideologically, the HTS has been an Islamist insurgent group which have fought to create an Islamic State. Although they have become the legal form of governance in Syria the ideology of the group remains a direct threat to such minority groups.
The Druze are an Arab ethno-religious minority with a unique monotheistic faith. It incorporates elements of Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Greek philosophy. They number around 1.5 million globally, with notable populations in Syria, Lebanon, and Israel. In Syria, approximately 700,000 Druze reside primarily in Suwayda province, Jaramana, and the Golan Heights. Historically, the Druze have had an independent identity and tended to balance changing alignments in order to protect their communities. Their allegiance is generally toward their immediate sect, not toward governments. It has caused them periodic friction with governing regimes in the region.
Clashes between the Sides
The instruction to IDF came after a series of violent confrontations in Jaramana. According to reports from Syria, tensions erupted after a member of the security forces entered the settlement and began shooting into the air. The event led to an exchange of fire with local Druze gunmen. This led to the officer’s death. The following day, gunmen from the Damascus suburb of Mleiha entered Jaramana and clashed with Druze fighters, which caused one Druze gunman dead and nine others wounded.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed these developments. The organization noted that Syrian government forces have been attempting to assert control over the area. Local reports indicate that at least one security officer was killed, and another was captured before being released.
Israel’s recent warning to Syria’s new government, formed after the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime in December, also highlights its growing role in the region’s geopolitics. Netanyahu has stated that Israeli troops will remain in Syria’s buffer zone “indefinitely,” reinforcing Israel’s security interests near its borders. The prime minister has also demanded the full demilitarization of southern Syria, specifically in the provinces of Quneitra, Daraa, and Suweyda.
The Greater Israel plan
The recent announcement may also be seen in a larger context where Israel believes in creating a ‘Greater Israel’ for that Israel has to take control of land that currently belongs to its neighbouring arab state. The decision to take the buffer zone and prepare to send an army to save Druze may have come from the greater Israeli aspiration.
Following the fall of Assad, Israeli forces moved quickly to seize control of a buffer zone on the Syrian side of the border, a move condemned by the United Nations as a violation of the 1974 disengagement accord. While Israel argues that the agreement has become obsolete due to the collapse of the Syrian state, international organizations and Syrian authorities have called for Israel to withdraw.
Israel’s growing involvement in Syria extends beyond military presence. Reports indicate that Israeli authorities have begun developing a pilot program that would allow Syrian Druze to work in Israeli towns on the Golan Heights. The initiative, reportedly led by Maj. Gen. Ghassan Alian, head of the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, was requested by Golan Druze concerned about their Syrian brethren’s safety. The initial phase of the program would see dozens of Syrian Druze employed in construction and agriculture in Israeli Druze towns.
The decision to intervene in Jaramana marks a broader shift in Israel’s policy towards Syria, where it has historically limited its military actions to targeted strikes against Iranian-backed militias and Hezbollah positions. However, the recent clashes involving Druze communities in Jaramana have prompted Israeli leaders to publicly commit to their protection.
Israel’s defence ministry repeated this position in its latest statement, emphasizing that the military is prepared to take action if Syrian forces continues to target Druze areas. “We demand the complete demilitarization of southern Syria in the provinces of Quneitra, Daraa, and Sweida from the forces of the new regime,” the statement read. “Likewise, we will not tolerate any threat to the Druze community in southern Syria.”
Since last December, Israel has consistently raised the issue of the situation of religious and ethnic minorities in Syria, specifically the Druze and Kurds. The recent fighting in Jaramana highlights the precarious nature of Syria’s post-Assad regime, where several groups are fighting for control.
Regional Effects
The broader geopolitical implications of Israel’s intervention remain uncertain. While the Israeli government presents its actions as humanitarian efforts to protect the Druze, the presence of Israeli forces in southern Syria could provoke further tensions with Damascus.
However, the Syrian regime is not in a position to bear the dent from the highly equipped Israeli Army in the region. The Syrian government has yet to issue an official response to Israel’s latest warning, but it is unlikely to welcome Israeli military operations so close to the capital.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan commented on recent statements by Israeli leaders extending IDF protection over Syria’s Druze community against government forces and the demilitarization of the southern border region. Without mentioning Israel by name, Erdogan said, “Those who seek to benefit from Syria’s instability must know they will not achieve their goals. We will not allow Syria to be divided as they envision.”
Meanwhile, Netanyahu’s government is also under domestic pressure to ensure security along the northern border. The prime minister has been making efforts to assure Israeli citizens, particularly those residing along the border with Lebanon and Syria, that the government is doing everything in its power to safeguard their safety.
As the crisis in Jaramana evolves, Israeli involvement in Syria is going deeper than occasional airstrikes and security raids. The defence of the Druze appears as a central Israeli policy objective at this time. It could have possible long-term implications for the nation’s regional policy and Syrian relations. It remains to be seen what will be the larger geopolitical consequences of this intervention which now threatens to expand into a larger conflict as other regional powerhouses get involved.