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Lebanon's Druze fear IS, Hezbollah

The Druze in Lebanon are preparing to defend themselves against a possible attack by the Islamic State, in light of their shaky trust in Hezbollah.
Lebanese Army soldiers and relatives of Druze soldier Khaldoon Raouf Hamoud carry his coffin during his funeral in Akbeh, Rashaya August 3, 2014. Lebanese soldiers traded fire with Islamist gunmen and shelled areas around the border town of Arsal on Sunday in a push to dislodge the biggest incursion by militants into Lebanon since Syria's civil war began. At least 10 Lebanese soldiers have died in the fighting, which erupted after Islamist gunmen seized a local police station on Saturday in response to the
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The Lebanese Druze leadership and community have sat on the sidelines of the inter-Muslim conflict arising in the region. But they are facing a growing dilemma with the rise of the Islamic State (IS) in Lebanon, stuck in a struggle between the threat posed by the organization and the Druze community's difficult history with Hezbollah.

As Lebanon’s north was rocked by battles between extremists affiliated with Jabhat al-Nusra and IS against the army, a small unit of Druze militants participated in live-fire exercises and combat training in one of the verdant valleys of the Metn Mountains, sources said.

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