Statement on Sectarian Violence in Druze Areas

The Alawites Association of the United States condemns the escalating violence targeting the Druze communities in Syria on April-28 and 29 and still going, particularly the recent attacks and clashes in Jaramanah and Sahnaya — two majority-Druze towns that also host large Christian populations. These areas have faced a wave of sectarian incitement and armed threats, fueled by jihadist narratives that flourish under the de facto rule of extremist groups such as Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).

This violence is a direct outcome of the climate of hate speech tolerated — and at times amplified — by the HTS-controlled authorities. Their ongoing failure to hold anyone accountable for past atrocities, including massacres against Alawite civilians, has emboldened extremist actors to expand their targets.

We demand immediate action: criminalize hate speech, protect vulnerable communities, and prosecute those who incite or commit violence in the governmental forces specifically. But deeper reform is needed.

The political course must shift. Syria cannot survive as a centralized authoritarian state where communities live in fear of the next regime or militia. Decentralized government— grounded in pluralism, local autonomy, and constitutional guarantees — is the only viable path to protect diverse regions like the Druze area in the south, the western Syria coast, and northeast Syria.

If the current trajectory continues, all of Syria’s minorities — Druze, Alawites, Christians, Yazidis, and others — will be at risk. It is time to change course before it’s too late