Israeli funding to Syria's Druze stirs controversy amid unmet northern rebuilding needs

Report by Amal Shehadeh, English adaptation by Mariella Succar

Israelis are still grappling with the government's failure to allocate sufficient funds to rebuild northern towns devastated by the war, while funds continue to flow to Druze communities in southern Syria.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is reportedly seeking to secure the annexation of southern Syrian Druze villages to Israel as part of his broader regional strategy.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar approved $800,000 in humanitarian aid to Syrian Druze, with 30% of the funds directed to Druze villages in the buffer zone imposed by Israel inside Syria, and 70% allocated to Suwayda in the Jabal al-Druze region.

Another sum, advanced by Netanyahu, amounted to $1.1 billion in an attempt to also support Syria's Druze and conscript them.

As Israel intensifies its international campaign to establish a federal and autonomous system in Syria along ethnic lines, it is simultaneously working to secure a majority of supporters for the plan. Channel 14 has been a key platform in marketing the initiative.

During the swearing-in ceremony of the new army chief of staff Eyal Zamir, Netanyahu boasted about Israel's control over Mount Hermon, while hinting at his ambition to expand Israeli influence deeper into Syrian territory through an alliance with the Druze.