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Druze: Druze Community
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Much more important to the declining fortunes of the Druze community... was the general stagnation of the Jabal economy at a time when Syria was undergoing its most dramatic economic boom. Not a single major development project was carried out in the Jabal during the Shishakli period. Development of Syria's water supply such as the Homs-Hama, Khabur, Sinn, al-Mudiq, and Muzayrib irrigation projects, and the draining of the Ghab and Rawj swamps exhausted the government's development budget and did nothing for the Jabal Druze. By irrigating an additional 195,446 acres they increased Syria's agricultural production and drove down local grain prices, the mainstay of the Druze economy.
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The Israeli Druze community is the only major non-Jewish group in the state whose sons are required to serve in the IDF. Over the past 50 years the community has forged a covenant of blood with the Jewish state, suffering hundreds of casualties while loyally defending the State of Israel.
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The Druze religion has its roots in Ismailism, a religio-philosophical movement which founded the Fatimid Caliphate in Egypt in the tenth century. During the reign of al-Hakim (996 - 1021) the Druze creed came into being, blending Islamic monotheism with Greek philosophy and Hindu influences. Active proselytizing of the new creed was brief; since about 1050 the community has been closed to outsiders.
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The Druze had no geographical base from which to lobby for an autonomous regional authority. They were ... too small in number to take any kind of powerful role in national affairs, which were dominated by two large sects, the Maronite Christians and Sunni Muslims. They had one privilege granted by the French that they had not enjoyed under the Ottomans: the right to officially administer their own civil affairs according to the laws and customs of their community. Despite this, a long and complicated number of coups and upheavals continued in Syria and Lebanon.
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The Jabal Druze always played a far more important role in Syrian politics than its comparatively small population would suggest. With a community of little more than 100,000 in 1949, or roughly three percent of the Syrian population, the Druzes of Syria's southeastern mountains constituted a potent force in Syrian politics and played a leading role in the nationalist struggle against the French. Under the military leadership of Sultan Pasha al-Atrash, the Druzes provided much of the military force behind the Great Syrian Revolt of 1925-1927. In 1945 Amir Hasan al-Atrash, the paramount political leader of the Jabal, led the Druze military units in a successful revolt against the French, making the Jabal Druze the first and only region in Syria to liberate itself without British assistance from French rule. No Syrians played a more heroic role in the struggle against colonialism or shed more blood for independence than the Druzes. At independence the Druzes, made confident by their successes, expected that Damascus would reward them for their many sacrifices on the battlefield.
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The life of the average Druze revolves closely around his or her family and his or her relationship with other Druze. Apart from Thursday night religious meetings, the Druze enjoy spending time together through visits to each other's homes. Hospitality is an important feature of the culture. The Druze are known for their generosity and are guided by a sense of chivalry and honor. This concept compels the Druze to look after each other, including widows, orphans, and the destitute. If the extended family cannot take care of a member, the larger community will find a means of support.
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