Druza is worried about being left in post -war Syria

When the shooting began outside her home in the suburb of Damascus on Ashrafi Sanai, Lama Al-Hazano grabbed her phone and locked in her bathroom.

For hours, she was hiding with fear when military -style fighters, and the camouflage desert was walking the streets of the neighborhood. A heavy machine gun was installed on a military vehicle, just below the window on its balcony.

“Jihad vs. Druz” and “We will kill you, druse,” the men shouted.

She did not know who men were – extremists, security forces for security, or someone else – but the message was clear: as a friend she was not safe.

Druza – a community with its unique practices and beliefs whose faith began as a shot of Shiite Islam – historically occupied an uncertain position in the political order of Syria.

Former President Bashar al-Assad maintained a quiet loyalty to the state, hoping that bringing them from the sectarian bloodshed, which consumed other parts of Syria during the 13-year Civil War.

Many Druzi took to the streets during the uprising, especially in recent years. But by striving to present himself by protecting the minorities in Syria against Islamist extremism, Assad avoids using the appearance of iron against the protesters of Druz, which he made in other cities who rebelled against his rule.

They operated on their own militia that defended their regions against attacks by Sunni Muslim extremist groups, who considered the True heretics while left alone by the pro-Assadi forces.

But with Assad, overthrown by rebels led by Sunni Islamists who have formed the temporary government, this unspoken pact has emerged and Druz is now worried about being isolated and directed in the post -war Syria.

Recent attacks on Druze communities by Islamist militias who have contacted the government in Damascus freely nourish the growing distrust of the state.

He began at the end of April with a leaking audio record, claiming to have represented the religious leader of Druza, who offended the Prophet Mohammed. Although the leader denied that this was his voice, and Syria’s Interior Ministry later confirmed that the record was fake, the damage was done.

A video of a student at the University of Homs in Central Syria has become viral, and he calls on Muslims to take revenge on Druz immediately, causing sectarian violence in communities across the country.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights Based in the UK Monitoring said that at least 137 people – 17 civilians, 89 Druza fighters and 32 security forces – were killed – were killed After a few days of battles in Ashrafi SanaiThe southern suburb of Damascus in Jaraman and in an ambush on the Subeya-Damask highway.

The Syrian government said the Ashrafi Sanai security forces was carried out to restore security and stability and that it was in response to attacks on their own staff, where 16 of them were killed.

Lama Zrauriddin, a pharmacy student at the University of Damascus, was only weeks since her degree when the violence reached her village. What started as a remote firing has become a direct attack – shooting, mortars and chaos, tearing its neighborhood.

Her uncle arrived on a small bus, urging women and children to run under fire while the men were left behind with nothing more than light weapons. “The attackers had heavy machine guns and mortars,” Lama recalls. “Our men had nothing to match.”

The violence did not stop in her village. The University of Lama were stormed hostel rooms and the students were beaten with chains.

In one case, a student was stabbed after he was simply asked if he was a friend.

“They (the instigators) told us that we had left our universities of choice,” she said. “But how can I stay? I was in five classes and one graduating project away from my degree. Why would I give up that if it wasn’t serious?”

Like many friends, Lama’s fear is not just a physical attack – it’s from what she sees as a country that has failed to offer protection.

“The government says these were unaccounted for,” she asked.

Her trust was further shaken by classmates who made fun of her difficult situation, including the one who answered with laughing Emoji to her post about running her village.

“You never know how people really see you,” she said quietly. “I don’t know who to trust more.”

While no one is sure who the attackers promised their faithfulness, one thing is clear: many Druzi worry that Syria is moving to an intolerable order dominated by Sunni with a small space for religious minorities like them.

“We don’t feel safe with these people,” Hadi Abu Hasun told the BBC.

He was one of the men of Sweyda, to protect Ashrafi Sanai on the day Lama was hiding in his bathroom.

Its convoy was ambushed by armed groups using mortars and drones. Hadi was shot in the back, piercing his lungs and breaking a few ribs.

This is far from the inclusive Syria, which was referred to by a new leadership.

“Their ideology is religious, not based on the law or the state. And when someone acts from religious or sectarian hatred, it does not represent us,” Hadi said.

“What represents us is the law and the state. The law is what protects everyone … I want protection against law.”

The Syrian government has repeatedly emphasized the sovereignty and unity of all Syrian territories and denominations of Syrian society, including Druza.

Although the clashes and attacks have since subsided, the belief in the government’s ability to defend minorities has declined.

During the days of fighting, Israel made air strikes around the Sanai Ashrafia, claiming that it was aimed at “operating” attacking Druz to protect the minority group.

He also struck an area near the Syrian Presidential Palace, saying that “it would not allow forces south of Damascus or any threat to the Druz community.” Israel itself has a large number of friend citizens in the country and lives in Israeli Syrian Heights.

Back to Ashrafi Sanai Lama Al -Hazano said that the atmosphere had shifted -it was “more relaxed but cautious”.

She sees the neighbors again, but the caution lingers.

“Trust is disturbed. Now there are people in the city who do not belong, who came during the war. It is difficult to understand who is already.”

The trust in the government remains thin.

“They say they work to protect all Syrians. But where are the real steps? Where is justice?” Lama asked.

“I don’t want to be called a minority. We are Syrians. All we want are the same rights – for those who attacked us to be held accountable.”

Additional reporting by Samantha Granville