The Druze live in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, and the Golan Heights. Their total population in the Middle East is reported to be 1.2 million.
Following the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad in Syria, the country’s religious minority groups and their relations with foreign countries have once again come to the fore.
At the head of these groups are the Druze, who live in southern Syria. The Druze, who remained outside the revolutionary process except for small-scale protests and clashes, have recently been mentioned in connection with their relations with Israel. While some of the Druze have taken a stand in favor of the new Syrian administration, some have focused on relations with Israel.
Especially recently, Israel has been carrying out attacks on the region under the name of “protecting the Druze in Syria” and threatening the new administration in Syria.
Who are the Druze?
The Druze are considered a type of esoteric faith group of Arab ethnic origin. Most of the Druze define themselves as Arabs and speak Arabic. In this respect, the Druze are seen as an ethnic and religious minority.
The Druze largely separate themselves from other ethnic and religious communities in the regions where they live. Religious conversion and marriages from other religions are not accepted within the Druze, and such people are excluded from the community.
Where do the Druze live?
The Druze live in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, and the Golan Heights. Their total population in the Middle East is reported to be 1.2 million. Approximately 200,000 Druze live in the diaspora.
Today, approximately 20,000 Druze live in the Golan Heights of Syria, which is under Israeli occupation. Most of them define themselves as Syrians and have refused the offer of Israeli citizenship since Israel occupied the region in 1967. Although these people have been granted residence permits in Israel, they are not recognized as Israeli citizens.
There are approximately 150,000 Druze who are citizens in Israel. These Druze, who live in the Haifa region and the Northern region of Israel, largely identify with Israeli identity and perform compulsory military service in the Israeli army. They state that there is a kind of “blood pact” between themselves and the Jews. In this context, many Druze have fought for the Israeli army from past to present.
Approximately one million Druze live in Lebanon and Syria. The Druze mostly live in Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, as well as around Mount Lebanon and Wadi al-Taym. In Syria, Druze are found in Suwayda in the south and in some neighborhoods of the capital Damascus, such as Jaramana.
How did the Druze faith emerge?
The basis of the Druze faith dates back to the 11th century. Druze is a belief that emerged from the Ismaili Shia faith.
The Druze first emerged in 1017-1018 in Egypt under the control of the Fatimids, as a combination of different beliefs and philosophies. The religious approaches and philosophical attitudes during the reign of Hakim Biemrillah, the sixth caliph of the Fatimids, and the fact that Hakim opened up space for esoteric beliefs in society, prepared the ground for the formation of the Druze.
In parallel with the beliefs spread by Ismaili missionaries such as Hamza bin Ali bin Ahmed and Muhammad bin Ismail al-Darazi, who were of Iranian origin during this period, the first members of this faith were organized. Hamza bin Ali was appointed as the head of this faith. In this process, Hamza put forward claims such as “there is no need for Islamic worship, people should learn the true divine knowledge from themselves.” Hamza especially received the intense support of the Fatimid caliph Hakim Biemrillah.
Although the Druze faith takes its name from Muhammad bin Ismail al-Darazi, Darazi was later excluded by the Druze as a “apostate”, but his work formed the basis of this faith. Over time, the Druze rejected the tenets of the Ismailis and focused on their own ideas.
In parallel with the political changes in Egypt over time, the Druze invitation, which lost its effectiveness, gained influence in the Biladu’ş Sham region. Various Druze communities were formed in regions such as present-day Lebanon and Syria.
What do the Druze believe in?
Due to its esoteric/esoteric structure, it is seen as quite difficult to determine the details of the Druze faith, just like the Nusayri faith. Because in the Druze faith, there are many beliefs that are secret, as well as some beliefs that are revealed. Importance is also given to observing takiyya to protect confidentiality.
One of the developments that enabled the details of the Druze faith to be revealed was the Syrian expedition of Ibrahim Pasha, the son of Kavalalı Mehmed Ali Pasha, between 1831-1838. When Ibrahim Pasha defeated the Druze in Wadi al-Taym, Egyptian soldiers entered Druze places of worship and confiscated their books. These books have spread to world libraries over time.
Druzeism incorporates elements of other religions, including Islam and its heretical interpretations, Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, and other ancient philosophies. Beliefs such as reincarnation take place in Druzeism, and figures in Islam, Christianity, and Judaism are also recognized. For example, Hamza bin Ali, one of the founders of the faith, is believed to have appeared in different forms since the time of Hz. Adam, one of which is Salman-ı Farisi. Hamza is also considered “the way to God, the creator of the angels carrying God’s throne, and the mediator between God and man.”
In line with the belief in reincarnation, according to the Druze, after death, the soul comes to the world in another body. All souls were created at the same time, and since then the total number of souls has neither increased nor decreased. A soul goes through many trials in different bodies throughout its many lives. Every soul has the opportunity to progress upwards until it reaches purity. Through reincarnations, the soul can eventually merge with the “universal mind”, that is, the “cosmic element”. This expression refers to a nurani means emanating from God. This is a bridge between the creator and the created. According to the Druze, the universal mind is Hamza bin Ali.
According to the Druze, the concept of heaven and hell is spiritual. According to them, heaven is the ultimate happiness that the soul reaches when it unites and confronts its creator, and hell is being eternally deprived of His glorious presence.
The belief that Hakim Biemrillah disappeared and will reappear is also a part of the Druze belief. Again, Druze imams are accepted as flawless and a divine quality is attributed to these imams.
The Druze also attribute an esoteric meaning to the divine texts, stating that they have hidden meanings beyond their apparent meanings and that only their imams know these meanings.
Hamza bin Ali, whom the Druze accept as the founding leader, displays an attitude against all prophets from Hz. Adam to Hz. Muhammad. According to him, these prophets corrupted the true faith and invited people to a false god. However, today’s Druze have a softer attitude towards these prophets and accept their prophethood, albeit to a limited extent.
What is the role of the Druze in the region?
The Druze have been in different positions and displayed different stances in the Middle East from past to present. In this case, the difference between those who are truly committed to the Druze faith and those who come from this faith culturally has also been decisive.
The Druze, who also held positions in the Abbasid palace, also obtained important positions during the Ottoman Empire. One of them was undoubtedly Emir Shakib Arslan. Emir Shakib, who came from the Arslan family, one of the leading families of the Druze, is one of the Sunnified Druze. Emir Shakib, an influential figure in the region, has been one of the greatest defenders of the Ottoman and Islamic unity policies among the Arabs.
The Druze also have significant influence in Syria and Lebanon in the new era. The Druze, one of the minority groups that stood out in the increase of external influences, also carried out many rebellions in Syria in the 1800s. In Syria, the Druze were also among the first supporters of the ruling Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party. In 1963, Druze officers participated in the coup that brought the party to power for the first time.
In Lebanon, the Druze have an influence mostly through the country’s main Druze party, the Progressive Socialist Party. The leader of the party, Walid Canbolat, displays a more conciliatory appearance and is in alliance with the Sunni segments.
What is the relationship between the Druze and Israel?
During the British occupation of Palestine, while the Zionists were forming gangs and fighting against the Muslim Arabs, the Druze also supported them. When Israel declared its independence in 1948 and war broke out with the Arab states, the Druze fought alongside Israel.
Former Israeli President Chaim Herzog describes this relationship with the words: “There has been a long-standing friendship between the Druze and the Jews in Israel. In our war of independence, many Druze fought shoulder to shoulder with the Jews to repel the Arab invasion.”
In Israel, the Druze hold some important positions in politics and the army. Unlike Muslim and Christian Arabs, the Druze are forced to perform compulsory military service in Israel, and this situation is seen as a privilege by the Druze.
Despite all this, the Druze complain about not receiving the necessary attention from Israel and being “second-class citizens”. The Druze were among the most vehement critics of the nation-state law, which officially declared Israel a “Jewish state” in 2018.
Tens of thousands of Druze gathered in Tel Aviv to protest the law, which defines Israel as the “nation state of the Jewish people”, and argued that this law reduced them to second-class citizen status.
Recently, Israel has also been trying to intervene in Syria by supporting the Druze in Syria. In this context, the Druze were allowed to come to Israel. In addition, aid was distributed to the Druze fighting against the Syrian administration, Druze militias were supported with air strikes, and the wounded were taken to Israel for treatment.
Although a certain part of the Druze in Syria has established relations with Israel, it is stated that a significant part of the Syrian Druze still oppose Israel. Druze opinion leaders and the people of the region condemned Israel’s recent occupation move against Syria.
Source: https://www.mepanews.com/6-soruda-durziler-kimdir-ve-israil-ile-iliskileri-nedir-72073h.htm
