Two faces of Syria: Druze integration amid northern violence

Residents and elders of Suweida, a predominantly Druze province, have agreed with the Syrian government to fully integrate into the state.

According to The New Arab, this new agreement will put Suweida’s security services under the authority of the Ministry of Interior. This agreement stands as an essential shift for the newly formed government under Ahmed al-Sharaa, who has come under criticism for the killing of civilians in the northwest after an offensive on Alawite and pro-Assad loyalists started on March 6th.

The agreement will centre around Suweida’s security services being placed under the control of the Syrian Ministry of Interior. The Syrian government will appoint a governor and police chief who are not required to be from the area, whilst the police are manned by members of the local population.

The spiritual leader of the Druze community has also come out in support of a unified Syria. Al-Hijri stated that “unity of Syria, its land and people” is a priority, not division. The Druze community reflects a need in Syria for a minority community to maintain their identity whilst creating a united Syria.

This move looks to assure some sort of national unification. Yet it feels rather interesting for al-Sharaa and the HTS to take this stance in the south of the country versus their actions in the northwest. In the northwest, we are seeing what is reported to be over 1,000 people murdered, including civilians, Alawites, and pro-Assad members.

This is a stark difference from the agreement which will occur with the Druze in the south. Al-Sharaa has made it clear in his speeches that he is pro-unification by protecting minority groups. Yet this difference in strategy to the south versus the west sits in a very different context.

For some time there have been fears provoked by Turkish analysts that Israel may plan to divide Syria by coming in from the east. This fear was intensified when, with the fall of the Assad regime, Israel escalated military aggression in Syria with air strikes in the south on the 25th of February, and air strikes even took place on the 10th of March in the Southern Daraa province.

This intervention and attack by the Israelis has made the south a serious situation for the new Syrian government, which must look to assure and unite the country if they are to bring stable leadership.

This provocation by Israel does not appear to be working in the southern region as the people of Suweida protested on the streets to denounce Israel’s attempt to divide the province on the 24th of February.

This new agreement with the Druze in the south builds on the protest and helps to assure the south for the new Syrian government.

Yet it remains intriguing the difference in approach by the new government, where in the north they have murdered civilians and in the south they have extended protection and found a peaceful solution.

This is a big step for the new government in unifying its southern provinces and assuring the Israelis that their territory is not up for grabs. The successful integration of Suweida demonstrates that peaceful solutions are possible when minority rights are respected.

However, the stark contrast between this diplomatic approach in the south and the violent campaign in the north raises serious questions about al-Sharaa’s true commitment to national unity.

For Syria to attain lasting stability, al-Sharaa and his government must adopt an inclusive approach in the north, where ongoing military operations indicate that peaceful unification is still a distant prospect.

The New Arab, Amnesty, The Times of Israel