Majdal Shams, an Israeli-controlled Druze home, lives comfortably on the edge of war

MAJDAL SHAMS, Golan Heights (AP) – High in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, the town of Majdal Shams is home to members of one of the Middle East's smallest religions: the Druze.

Originating from 10th-century Ismailism, a branch of Shiite Islam, the million-strong minority is spread across Syria, Lebanon, Israel and the Golan Heights.

About 25,000 live in the Golan Heights, a rocky plateau captured from Syria by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war. Israel's occupation of the area in 1981 was recognized only by the United States, while the rest of the world considers it to have taken over Syria.

Many Druze religious practices are shrouded in secrecy, outsiders are not allowed to convert. Only glimpses are visible: women wearing flowing white headscarves; men with round white hats and flowing beards.

Although Israeli citizenship is open to the Druze of the Golan Heights, most have chosen not to take it, although they have residency rights.

They maintain the identity of the Druze and their culture. The fall of Syrian President Bashar Assad last week saw people take to the streets in Majdal Shams to celebrate Assad's ouster, carrying the red, yellow, blue, white and green Druze flag that stood out against the green, white and black Syrian flag. with three red stars.

As the region was once again hit by chaos and fighting, evidence of the 1967 war is still visible, with old trenches and abandoned tanks. A security fence, topped with coils of barbed wire, now runs along the edge of town, cutting across the field from the nearby Alpha Line.

The current wars did not leave Majdal Shams unscathed. On October 8, 2023, the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah launched an attack on Israel in coordination with a Hamas attack that crossed the border the previous day, sparking a nearly 14-month war in northern Israel. On a night in late July, a rocket hit a soccer field in Madjal Shams while children were playing. 12 children, aged 10 to 16, were killed, and about 20 other people were injured.

This strike caused an uproar in the city. Five months later, football games resumed on the playground, where a small makeshift memorial with toys and teddy bears marks the spot where the rocket hit.

Israel's ceasefire with Hezbollah last month brought the city a brief respite. But with Syria's Assad overthrown and Syrian militant groups and Israeli forces operating across the border, the residents of Majdal Shams, many of whom have relatives in Syria, now face increased uncertainty and insecurity.

Some families are separated by what is known as the Alpha Line, the beginning of the buffer zone that separates the Israeli-controlled area of ​​the Golan Heights from Syria. They wandered through their Syrian history while living under Israeli rule. Across the border in Lebanon and Syria, the Druze generally embrace Arab nationalism, including support for the Palestinian cause.

Israel has also built settlements in the Golan Heights which are now home to 25,000 Israeli Jews, and the area is a popular tourist destination for Israelis. Many flock to the mountain areas to experience the surroundings and the local hot springs.