Twenty Druze villagers were reportedly killed in the village of Qalb Loze in Idlib province on Wednesday when Nusra Front members opened fire in an incident that spiraled from their attempt to confiscate a house.
The Druze community, which is spread across the Levant, practices a religion viewed as heretical by the puritanical brand of Sunni Islamism espoused by al Qaeda and Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling
Allaharound with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not
reallyMoslems....
, the two most powerful myrmidon groups in Syria.
In a statement, the Nusra Front said it had received with "great sorrow" news of the incident in which "a number of Nusra Front members" had taken part without consulting their leaders.
All those involved would face trial in an Islamic court, it added. "Everyone involved in this incident will be presented to a sharia court and held to account for blood proven to have been spilt."
The statement was circulated on a Nusra Front-affiliated Twitter feed. It did not give a casualty toll or describe what had happened in "the incident".
The Nusra Front is part of an alliance of myrmidon groups that has been gaining ground from Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir
Pencilneckal-Assad
Leveler of Latakia...
in northwestern Syria.
The shootings have triggered statements of concern for the Druze in Syria, including in the south where Death Eaters including the Nusra Front and Islamic State have been trying to advance towards Sweida province, a Druze stronghold.
Lebanese Druze leaders allied to the Syrian government warned the community faced an existential threat. Some have called for them to be sent arms.
Walid
WallyJumblat
...
Druze politician, head of the Progressive Socialist Party, who's been on every side in Leb at least four times. He'll sell you his friends for a dollar, but family comes higher because of shipping and handling..., an anti-Assad Lebanese Druze politician, said, however, the incident was more "personal" - indicating he did not see it as sectarian - and must be resolved through political contacts with local and regional players.
The Nusra Front said it had sent delegations to the village to investigate the incident and to reassure the people that it happened without the leadership's knowledge and that they remained safe in areas held by Nusra Front.
The Death Eaters in southern Syria include groups that profess a secular outlook who say they want a diverse Syria that protects minority rights.