On March 21, when US President Donald Trump tweeted that he supports recognizing Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights, tempers flared in Druze villages across the territory. Hundreds of protesters gathered in Majdal Shams, waving Syrian flags, carrying photographs of President Bashar al-Assad and shouting, “Golan – Syrian land forever.” 

Israel has occupied 1,250 square kilometers of the Golan Heights for 52 years, ever since capturing it in 1967 from the Syrians, who used its strategic position to attack Israeli villages in the Galilee and Jordan Valley for nearly 20 years. Of the 128,000 Syrian citizens who once lived there, only 6,000, most of them Druze, decided to remain there. The rest abandoned their homes and fled to Syria. 

After 14 years of Israeli military rule, the Knesset passed a law annexing the Golan Heights and offering Israeli citizenship to residents of the territory. In response, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 497, declaring the annexation “null and void” according to international law.

Since that day in 1981, few residents have requested an Israeli identification card. According to Interior Ministry estimates, no more than 10% have chosen to become naturalized Israeli citizens. According to data obtained by Al-Monitor, there had been a sharp rise in the number of naturalization requests in recent years. Whereas in 2014 only 39 Druze requested citizenship, in 2016 the number increased to 188. It then decreased to 85 in 2018, but requests continue to be made. As of mid-March, 34 Druze had submitted applications to naturalize this year.