Druze in Israel

Israeli Druze or Druze Israelis (Arabic: الدروز الإسرائيليون; Hebrew: דְּרוּזִים יִשְׂרְאֵלִים) are an ethnoreligious minority among the Arab citizens of Israel. They preserve the Arabic language and culture as central components of their identity, and Arabic remains their primary language. Survey data indicates that roughly 70% of Druze consider themselves ethnically Arab, and that Israeli Druze prioritize their identity first as Druze, second as Arab, and third as Israelis. Additionally, very few Druze identify as Palestinian. Israel has the world's third-largest Druze population, after Syria and Lebanon. At the end of 2022, there were 150,000 Druze people living within Israel, representing a ten-fold increase since 1948. Druze comprise 1 % of the total population of Israel. The majority of Israeli Druze are concentrated in northern Israel, especially in Galilee, Carmel and the Golan areas. In 1957, at the request of Druze leaders, the Israeli government designated Druze Israelis as a distinct religious community. Alongside the Jewish majority and the Circassian minority, the Druze have been required by law to serve in the Israel Defense Forces since 1956. However, as is the case for the Circassian community, only men are conscripted. Druze men have one of the highest enlistment rates in the country, at over 80%. Druze women, in contrast with Jewish women, are exempted from mandatory military service. Members of the Druze community have held positions in the Israeli Knesset and attained other top positions in politics, government and public service. The Druze ethnic religion, called Druzism, originated in the Fatimid Caliphate in 11th century Egypt. It is a monotheistic faith that espouses the divinity of the Fatimid Caliph, a belief that is considered heretical in Islam. Druzism developed out of Isma'ilism, a branch of Shia Islam, but the Druze do not consider themselves Muslims.