Israeli Druze Ask for Safe Passage from Damascus

CBN News | Monday, July 23, 2012

[robowombat]

Israeli Druze Ask for Safe Passage from Damascus

CBNNews.com Monday, July 23, 2012

JERUSALEM, Israel -- Families of Israeli Druze students studying in Damascus appealed to the International Red Cross to help their children leave the embattled Syrian capital and return to Israel.

The students, who live in the Golan Heights, were in Damascus in connection with their courses, YNet reported. They were having trouble securing safe passage home through the Quneitra border crossing on the Golan Heights, which is monitored by the United Nations.

"For the time being we cannot coordinate the students' return to Israel, but we will do so when it is possible from a security standpoint," YNet quoted Red Cross spokesman in Israel Ran Goldstein.

"The situation in Syria is deteriorating. Entire neighborhoods are cut off due to the fighting, and people have been forced to leave their homes and stay in some 60 schools. Just last week, we were told by our colleagues in Syria, some 18,000 Syrian refugees crossed into Lebanon," Goldstein said.

In a related matter, the Arab League on Sunday called for Syrian President Bashar Assad to step down.

Arab League Secretary-General Nabil Elaraby called for an end to the bloodshed.

"We have to realize that we are in a new and important phase that requires strong action to face the facts on the ground," Elaraby said, "at a time when [U.N. special envoy Kofi] Annan's plan did not achieve anything."

Member nations also voted to back a second attempt by the Palestinian Authority to secure unilateral recognition by the U.N. Last September, the U.S. vetoed the P.A.'s unilateral statehood bid in the Security Council.

[tet68]

a time when [U.N. special envoy Kofi] Annan’s plan did not achieve anything.”

These guys crack me up.
Is this about Syria, Israel, Iran, or North Korea?

[KarlInOhio]

Israeli students studying in Syria in the current political climate there? Even though they are Druze instead of Jewish, they still get:

Oy, a Jewish facepalm.

[SJackson]

Middle East and terrorism, occasional political and Jewish issues Ping List. High Volume

If you’d like to be on or off, please FR mail me.

..................

Israeli Druze students studying in Damascus ...

The source of the travel problem is rather obvious.

[Pecos]

At the risk of offending anyone with children there - What brand of stupid does it take to do that?

[bill1952]

I consider the Druse a small but complex factor in this conflict.

I have personally met Druse living in the area who fought for the Syrians against Israel, but who were very wary of the Syrian authorities as well.
Interesting.

[robowombat]

Interesting also as the Mt. Carmel Druze have supported Israel since 1948 and served in numbers much grater than their relative share of the population in the IDF many being decorated for valor. The relationship between the Druze communities in Israel, Lebanon and Syria is one of those truly unknown areas. If I were a Druze in Syria I would want to clear out as when the current falls, if it does, the Druze are going to subject to being massacred as heretics. Orthodox Sunni hate Muslim heretical sects such as the Druze with an intensity that makes their feelings for Israel seem to be mild disapproval by comparison.

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks robowombat.

...appealed to the International Red Cross to help their children leave the embattled Syrian capital and return to Israel. The students, who live in the Golan Heights, were in Damascus in connection with their courses...

Nice work by the author of this article -- the students want to leave Syria and return to the Golan Heights, which are in Israel. Bravo!!!