The Kurdish Red Crescent sent aid to thousands of Druze families in Syria’s southern province of Sweida, according to Kurdish media outlet Rudaw on Saturday.
The report reflects the growing support that many Kurds feel for the Druze, as well as vice versa. The two communities are minorities in Syria and both are concerned over possible persecution at the hands of the new transitional government. The two regions are also both continuing to seek degrees of autonomy from Damascus.
The Kurdish regions of eastern and northern Syria have historically suffered persecution by the Assad regime. When the Syrian rebellion began, many of these areas found themselves relatively independent as the government forces retreated to fight the rebels. However, this feeling of new freedom was short-lived because ISIS soon appeared and began attacking Kurdish cities such as Kobani in northern Syria. Kurds resisted and many flocked to the banner of the People’s Protection Units or YPG. In 2015 the US backed the creation of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which successfully defeated ISIS by 2019, and came to control eastern Syria.
The Druze experience was different. Many Druze in Syria served in the armed forces, as they do in Israel. Issam Zahreddine, a Druze general in the Syrian army, successfully defended Deir Ezzor from ISIS. However, this also meant that Druze were sometimes perceived as pro-regime. Sunni jihadist groups clashed with the Druze. In one incident, several Syrians who had been evacuated to Israel for care from near the Golan were attacked in an ambulance when traversing Majd al-Shams in the Golan. This illustrated the ethnic tensions between Druze and some Syrian Sunni Arabs.
When the Assad regime fell, Druze communities were concerned that the new Syrian leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, might not provide areas such as Sweida the kind of autonomy that locals wanted. This led to clashes and a cycle of violence in which Israel intervened to back the Druze.
Similar low-level clashes have developed with the SDF. However, the SDF commander, Mazloum Abdi, traveled to Damascus in March and stated that he would integrate his forces with the new government. Up until now, integration has not happened.
Druze and Kurd solidarity
This leads some to see Druze and Kurds as possibly in the same boat in Syria. The new report at Rudaw of support for Sweida is a symbol of this complex new dynamic.
“We have distributed 3,500 baskets of food there. [Amal] Center is treating 1,500 cancer patients there. Because of the siege, patients cannot go to Damascus for treatment. The patients who receive chemotherapy should continue receiving the treatment uninterrupted. More than a month ago, we began providing for all the medical needs of the 1,500 cancer patients,” Hadiya Abdullah, co-chair of Kurdish Red Crescent, told Rudaw English on Friday.
“We help the farmers of Sweida by providing water and fuel so that the agriculture sector is not impacted. We have also distributed 40,000 packs of meals. We have also provided financial support for 100 families who were among the most affected,” she said.
According to the report, up to 60 percent of households in Sweida lack sufficient food. There are also 187,000 displaced people. These numbers apparently also include Bedouin tribesmen who clashed with the Druze in July.
The report in Rudaw states that among the items transferred to Sweida were solar power panels. “Due to restrictions imposed as part of the ceasefire, the aid is not being directly distributed by the Kurdish Red Crescent, but by local volunteers,” the report said. “The Women’s Association for Awareness and Empowerment, a northeast Syria (Rojava) based organisation, contributed to the latest shipment of aid sent to Sweida.” The report also states that a fundraising campaign has been launched in eastern Syria to support the Druze area.
Eastern Syria remains one of the poorest and most neglected areas of Syria. It has largely been cut off from the outside world for a decade and has only one small border crossing with the Kurdish autonomous region of northern Iraq. While US forces are in eastern Syria, this has not led to any economic boom there. In fact, Turkey which is a NATO ally of the US has sought to isolate eastern Syria because it opposes the SDF and YPG.
Rudaw added in its report that “the Druze community enjoys strong relations with Syria’s Kurds and their most powerful spiritual leader has called for the establishment of a route to connect Sweida to Rojava. The Kurdish authorities in Rojava have expressed readiness to provide full support for the Druze, especially humanitarian aid.”
The support for Sweida among Kurds is important because it forms part of the larger context of Israeli support for the Druze as well. Israel is cut off from Sweida by most of Daraa province. In addition, the Kurdish areas of eastern Syria are cut off from Sweida by the huge desert area of Homs province and also Deir Ezzor province.
Syria holds first post-Assad elections.
Syria is now having elections, and both the Kurdish region and SDF run parts of eastern Syria; Sweida is one of the major parts of Syria not involved in the current elections. As such, they share many other issues, challenges, and interests.