The quasi-governmental Jewish Agency for Israel has elected a member of the Druze minority to its board of governors, the organization announced on Sunday.
Col. (res.) Mofid Marai, 65, is a former Knesset member and commander of the IDF’s predominantly Druze Herev (“Sword”) Battalion. His older brother, Col. Nabiya Marai, was killed in action in 1996 while serving as deputy commander of the Gaza Division.
“It is a tremendous privilege for me to represent the Druze community on the Jewish Agency’s Board of Governors, and to be part of an organization committed to every community in Israel and across the Jewish world,” Marai said. “We, the members of the Druze community, have stood with the State of Israel for generations and will continue to do so in the future.”
A religious sect that began about a thousand years ago in Egypt as an offshoot of Shi’ite Islam, the Druze, who number about one million worldwide, primarily live in Syria, Lebanon and Israel, as well as in smaller communities in Western cities around the globe.
More than 150,000 Druze live in Israel, representing about 1.6% of the population, according to figures from the Central Bureau of Statistics.
The community’s men serve in the Israel Defense Forces, with 85% enlisting in combat units.
“I see my new position as a mission to strengthen the relationship, partnership and equality between the Druze community and the State of Israel, and a significant opportunity to advance the important needs of the Druze community in Israel,” Marai said.
“Having Col. Mofid Marai join the Board of Governors of the Jewish Agency symbolizes the deep connection as well as the recognition of the strategic and historical commitment between the Druze community and the State of Israel,” said agency chairman Maj. Gen. (res.) Doron Almog.
A dozen IDF soldiers from the Druze community have been killed in action since the outbreak of the war against Hamas in Gaza last year.
A Hezbollah rocket killed 12 Druze children as they played soccer in Majdal Shams in the Golan Heights on July 27. At least 42 others were wounded in the attack from Lebanon.
The Jewish Agency meeting also adopted a resolution calling on the Knesset to pass legislation affirming the full equality of rights for Israel’s Druze citizens.
