Said Abou Zaki – The Conversation

An elderly Druze man stands near Syria’s new flag and the multicolored Druze flag in Al Karama Square in the city of Sweida on March 4, 2025. AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki

August 11, 2025

For Syrian Druze, latest violence is one more chapter in a centuries‑long struggle over autonomy

Rami Zeedan, University of Kansas and Said Abou Zaki, Lebanese American University

The violence that overwhelmed Sweida in July 2025 reflects challenges under the transitional government, but also age-old tensions over Druze autonomy.

Walid Jumblatt, the political leader of Lebanon’s Druze minority, speaks in Beirut on July 18, 2025. AP Photo/Bilal Hussein

August 6, 2025

The Druze are a tightly knit community – and the violence in Syria is triggering fears in Lebanon

Mireille Rebeiz, Dickinson College and Said Abou Zaki, Lebanese American University

Lebanon has a long history of sectarian violence, and the recent events in Syria are causing alarm among its religious minorities, including the Druze.

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