Helping to heal a war-torn neighbor

When, after 54 years, the Assad regime surprisingly collapsed in Syria in December 2024, a period of near anarchy ensued. The Druze and Christian minorities came under attack-by both remnants of the regime and by Sunni Muslim groups.

Especially hard hit was the large concentration of Druze in the south in villages near the Israeli border. The Druze rallied to protect themselves and asked Israel for support. The IDF, faced with uncertainty about the new regime’s intentions, moved into Syria to control the area immediately adjacent to our border, heavily populated by Druze and Christians. The IDF provided both a buffer between the Syrian Army and Israel, and humanitarian aid to the Druze and Christian villages it now protected.

JUF-in partnership with the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (IFCJ), a Chicago-based philanthropy with whom it has jointly supported Israel’s Druze-decided to extend that aid to Syria’s Druze. JUF and the IFCJ provided them with life-saving medical supplies, including X-ray and ultrasound equipment for a new free clinic in a Druze-Christian village which otherwise lacks medical facilities. The clinic will also serve nearby Druze villages cut off from the rest of the country, with no access to medical services. 

On a sunny morning in June, an IDF truck brought the medical equipment and supplies to the village. I had the privilege of representing JUF, joining the convoy into Syria. The truck and jeeps we traveled in were accompanied by IDF forces as we crossed the Syrian border. Unsure of who might ambush the convoy along our hour-long drive, we wore helmets and JUF-branded Kevlar vests donated 18 months ago to Israeli Druze community security teams. We passed through a UN position manned by Nepalese soldiers and traveled down the Syrian side of Mount Hermon towards the village.

(Having served in Lebanon in the early 1980s, and visited Egypt and Jordan in other capacities, Syria was Israel’s only neighboring country I hadn’t visited.)

The village resembled so many Israeli ones the northern Galilee-small, stone homes and narrow alleys. Orchards surrounding the village provided livelihood for thousands. The locals, speaking Arabic, waved at our jeeps adorned with the blue-and-white Israeli flag.

Many of the villagers, both Druze and Christians, greeted us as we drove through the alleys. They were visibly excited to see us arrive and rushed to greet the IDF soldiers and take pictures with them. When we stopped at the building which would house the new clinic, we were swarmed by local children rushing to our jeep. They came with boxes of cookies for us, and shook hands with the soldiers. The soldiers themselves were happy to meet the locals, taking time to talk to them and give them sweets in return.

As we arrived at the clinic building, we were greeted by village leaders and elders, and two local doctors, where they prepared a small ceremony complete with amazingly tasty local fruits-cherries, apricots, and strawberries, plus local honey and more pastries.

I spoke on behalf of JUF, saying that the Jewish community of Chicago see this village, and the other Druze and Christian villages, as our sisters and brothers, deserving of our support even though they are part of Syria, a country still officially at war with Israel. I told them that we, a Jewish community, cannot stand by while they are under attack. Our Jewish values-and appreciation for the Druze people, who share a concept similar to ours (“all Jews are responsible for one another”)-compel us to help. The locals were visibly grateful and asked me to convey their gratitude to the Jewish community of Chicago. 

Leaving the village, kids saw us off with still more boxes of cookies and dates for their new Israeli friends.

This was a special day for me, as an Israeli civilian visiting Syria. It was also memorable, in that JUF showed once again that we are at the forefront of philanthropy-doing good for anyone, anywhere, in need. 

Ofer Bavly is a JUF Vice President and the Director General of the JUF Israel Office.