Historic pilgrimage: Israel allows 100 Druze sheikhs from Syria to visit Shrine of Jethro near Tiberias

A delegation of some 100 Druze religious leaders from southern Syria visited Israel on Friday, marking the first time in decades that Syrian Druze were allowed to visit a holy site near the city of Tiberias in northern Israel.

The delegation crossed the border near the Druze city of Majdal Shams in the Israeli Golan Heights and arrived in Julis, a town in the Galilee, for a visit with the spiritual leader of the Druze community in Israel, Sheikh Mowafaq Tarif.

Later on Friday, the three buses carrying the delegation arrived at the shrine of Nabi Shu’ayb, the Arabic name of a prophet mentioned in the Muslim Quran and identified with the biblical Jethro, the father-in-law of Moses.

Watch: Yesterday, for the first time in fifty years, Israel facilitated the entry of more than 100 Druze sheikhs from Syria so they could participate in a mass prayer at the tomb of Jethro in northern Israel.

📷: Walid Abu Haya pic.twitter.com/fs62NPyjYR

— Oren Marmorstein (@OrenMarmorstein) March 15, 2025

Shu’ayb is one of the most revered figures in the Druze religion, and his shrine has been among their most important pilgrimage sites since the Middle Ages.

Before the establishment of the State of Israel, Druze from nearby Lebanon and Syria would take part in the pilgrimages. However, since 1948 these pilgrimages have largely ceased due to the governments’ opposition to Israel.

The welcoming of our Druze brothers from Syria at the tomb of Nabi Shu'ayb (Jethro). pic.twitter.com/PKJSKY5D1K

— 🎗️Walid Abu Haya 🇮🇱 (@WalidAbuHaya1) March 14, 2025

According to Israeli media, the last pilgrimage to Nabi Shu’ayb by the Syrian Druze came just after the Yom Kippur War in 1976.

“This is a dream that has come true before our eyes after five decades, a peak of excitement among the Druze community that we have not known since the 1980s with the mutual visits to Lebanon,” Sheikh Tarif told Ynet News.

“This is a peace delegation, in the hope that the history that is being woven before our eyes will form a solid foundation for regional peace,” he added.

Against the backdrop of intensified Israeli outreach to the Syrian Druze, the visit drew frenetic praise and large crowds among Israel’s Druze community but faced some criticism from Syria.

For the first time ever, a delegation of Syrian Druze was received in Israel!
It's history in the making!
Here we see Druze TikToker, Mhna Azzam, celebrating the event in the village of Joulis.

Peace and Love to our Druze friends! Together we'll fight the Jihadists! pic.twitter.com/C26vIuUe1F

— Hamas Atrocities (@HamasAtrocities) March 15, 2025

On Friday evening, celebratory gunfire lightly wounded an Israeli girl in a Jewish town near Nabi Shu’ayb, Kan News reported.

The Druze of southern Syria are divided into two main settlement blocs: One abutting the Israeli Druze towns of the northern Golan Heights, and another in the Suweida province in an area known as “Mount Druze.”

The delegation that visited this weekend was mainly made up of sheikhs from the northern bloc, particularly from the village of Hader. Several weeks ago, a meeting of leaders in Hader purportedly declared their intention to be annexed by Israel.

The spiritual celebration of the historical meeting between Druze clerics from #Syria and their brothers in #Israel goes on. 🥹🥹@RajaaHaya pic.twitter.com/5h1gJxEJ0e

— 🎗️Walid Abu Haya 🇮🇱 (@WalidAbuHaya1) March 15, 2025

Meanwhile, some leaders from the Suweida region have publicly rejected Israel's advances and declared support for the new Syrian government, which is dominated by former members of the Islamist terror group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).

However, Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri, one of the main Druze leaders in Suweida, is opposed to reconciliation with HTS and appears to be supportive of strengthening ties with Israel.

Sources close to al-Hijri told Ynet, “Suspicious media outlets, with clear pro-Islamic goals, have tried and are still trying to sabotage the connection between the Druze in Israel and Syria, but despite everything - they have not succeeded.”

Al-Hijri himself told al-Arabiya: “There is no reconciliation or agreement with the authorities in Damascus, we are in a phase of ‘be or not to be.’ We are working for our interests as a community, we will go in the direction of what is suitable for the Druze community.”

Following the rise of the Islamist HTS government, Israel decided to pledge support and defense to the Druze community in Syria. "We will not tolerate any threat to the Druze community in southern Syria,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared.

In another unprecedented development, Israel plans to issue work visas to Syrian Druze workers, who could come to work in the Israeli Golan Heights.