Citing war, Druze leader calls on government to reverse 2018 nation-state law

Citing the war on Hamas in Gaza, a spiritual leader of the Druze community in Israel urges the government to address several of the community’s longstanding grievances.

In a letter, Mowafaq Tarif demands the government and Knesset amend the 2018 law that designates Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish People and “anchor constitutionally the status of the community and the rights of its members.”

The controversial 2018 Basic Law, which states that the “national home of the Jewish people, in which it fulfills its natural, cultural, religious, and historical right to self-determination,” was protested by many non-Jewish Israelis, in particular noting those who serve in the IDF.

In addition to the law, Tarif is seeking the annulment of demolition orders against structures built without permit in Druze villages if they were built on privately owned land and the cancellation of all fines imposed on Druze people for such construction in the Galilee and the Carmel Mountains.

“Some would say this is not the time to make such a plea but I believe this is necessary in the name of partnership, even more so today,” Tarif writes.

Several senior IDF officers from the Druze community, including Lt. Col. Salman Habaka and Lt. Col. Alim Abdallah, have been killed in battle since October 7.