Mourning their losses, Israel’s Druze community prepares to protest inequality

As Israel’s Druze community planned upcoming protests against the inequality they feel in Israeli society, they held a tree-planting ceremony on July 2 at Ahihud Forest in northern Israel to remember the nine Druze soldiers who have fallen in the current Iron Swords war.

Members of Israel's Druze and Circassian communities recently announced a weeklong series of protests against what they term government discrimination affecting their towns and villages. The protests, including a significant gathering in Jerusalem on July 8, are a response to perceived neglect and marginalization by state authorities.

The Jewish National Fund (KKL-JNF) organized the tree-planting event, which saw the participation of the families of the fallen soldiers, the qadi (spiritual leader) of the Druze community, Sheikh Mowafaq Tarif, northern region municipal leaders, representatives from the joint Druze-Jewish Kerem-El Pre-Military Academy, and several KKL-JNF employees.

The global Druze community, which is about a million strong, is largely spread across Israel, Lebanon, and Syria. In northern Israel, 130,000 Druze live in the Carmel and Galilee, while another 20,000 Druze live in the Golan Heights, a territory that Israel conquered from Syria in 1967. Most Druze in the Golan Heights identify as Syrians and have rejected Israel’s nationality.

This religious sect is an offshoot of Islam that originated in Egypt in the 11th century. It doesn’t allow conversions or intermarriage. This tightly knit community, whose mother tongue is Arabic, shows national pride and remains loyal to its country of residence. In Israel, Druze men over 18 have proudly enlisted and served in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) since 1957.

The Circassian community in Israel, numbering around 4,000 people, primarily resides in two villages: Kfar Kama and Rehaniya in the Galilee region. The Circassians are a Sunni Muslim ethnic group originally from the Caucasus region who were displaced in the 19th century following wars with the Russian Empire. They began settling in Ottoman Turkish Palestine in the late 19th century. Like the Druze, the Circassians in Israel have shown loyalty to the state and have a tradition of military service. Since 1958, Circassian men have been conscripted into the Israeli military.

'The Druze are part of Israel'

“The Druze are part of the State of Israel and are our brothers. We fight side by side, Jews and Druze, for the sake of the country. They are sacrificing their lives and bodies, so it is the bare minimum to come here (to the memorial) and pay respect to them,” Yuval Yenni, acting CEO of KKL-JNF, told The Media Line.

“We all live together in this country: Jews, Muslims, Christians, Circassians, Bedouins, Baha’is, and Druze. Not only here in the North but everywhere in the country, thank God, with mutual understanding. We mutually visit one another and share good and bad moments,” the Druze qadi, Tarif, shared with The Media Line.

Despite being Israeli citizens and serving in the army, the Druze still face double standards. There have been demonstrations of discontent since 2018, when thousands of Druze gathered in Tel Aviv to protest Israel’s nation-state law.

According to Meir Erlan, a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies and a retired IDF officer, “This law is basically focused on enshrining Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people and doesn’t mention equality and minorities’ rights. The system in Israel is not equal and grants only Jews the right to expand their communities. Moreover, this law puts Arabic on a lower status compared to Hebrew,” he explained to The Media Line.

Druze currently face issues related to planning and construction. The Kaminitz Law, which amended an Israeli building and planning law in 2017, gave the government greater oversight and enforcement powers. As a result, regulations that prohibit building new houses from scratch without approved master plans are now more tightly enforced in the Druze sector; construction law violators must pay expensive fines.

Additionally, severe infrastructure problems in this community make it almost impossible to redistribute and recategorize land or turn private land into public buildings or housing.

The State of Israel has allocated less money to minority groups compared to Jewish citizens, creating a lack of budget to invest in these minority communities.

“Ever since the establishment of the State of Israel, no Druze village was established, despite the growth of the Druze population. Housing shortages are a problem, and getting permission to build is very challenging. Many decide to build anyway, and this construction is consequently demolished by the state, as happens in Arab-Muslim villages,” Erlan stated.

He also explained that Israel’s Druze feel they are treated the same as Jews when it comes to serving their country but treated as Arabs when it comes to their rights. “In the army, this type of discrimination doesn’t occur, and we have examples of Druze involved in every task, compared to the past. However, we must include equality in our law and provide a proper budget to give to each community,” Erlan added.

Radi Serhan, the father of Master Sgt. (res.) Anwar Serhan, who fell in the line of duty during military operations in Gush Etzion on January 17, told The Media Line: “We want the government to give us the same rights as all Jews in this country, like where to live, electricity, water, and all conditions that the Jews have.”

To conclude the tree-planting ceremony, organizers played the Israeli national anthem, “Hatikva.” The Druze in attendance stood out of respect but remained silent throughout the anthem.