NNA - Former Progressive Socialist Party leader, Walid Jumblatt, accused Israel of attempting to win over Syria's Druze community as part of a broader strategy to fragment the Middle East into sectarian states. In an interview with AFP, Jumblatt warned that Israel continues its “old-new project of dismantling the region into sectarian entities and spreading chaos.”  

He voiced concern over the situation in Gaza and the West Bank and predicted similar destabilization efforts in Syria—not just among the Druze, but across communities.  

Recalling France’s colonial-era plan to divide Syria into sectarian cantons, Jumblatt highlighted the Druze role in thwarting that scheme through Sultan Pasha al-Atrash’s Arab revolt.  

Moreover, Jumblatt expressed hope that Syria's division can still be avoided, urging strong Arab and international engagement and support for interim Syrian President Ahmad Al-Sharaa.  

Jumblatt also rejected U.S. pressure for Lebanon to normalize ties with Israel and criticized conditions tied to military aid.

=============R.H.