Jumblat urges Druze in Syria to reject 'Israeli interference'

Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblat has urged members of the minority community in Syria to reject "Israeli interference" following Israeli threats against Damascus authorities if they harm the Druze.

"Preserving the (Druze) brothers (in Syria) involves rejecting Israeli interference," Jumblat said following a meeting with Druze figures in Beirut to discuss sectarian violence that erupted in Syria this week.

Clashes near Damascus between security forces and local Druze fighters have reportedly killed 39 people in two days.

The violence followed the circulation of an audio recording attributed to a Druze citizen and deemed blasphemous.

The Israeli military said its troops were instructed to "prepare to strike" Syrian government targets "should the violence against Druze communities continue."

"A stern message was conveyed to the Syrian regime -- Israel expects them to act to prevent harm to the Druze community," said a statement from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office.

Jumblat accused Israel of seeking to drag the Druze into an "endless war against Muslims," accusing Israeli Druze chief Mowafaq Tarif of supporting Israeli objectives.

The Druze, an esoteric offshoot of Islam, live mostly in Lebanon, Israel and Syria, including the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights.

Israel, which sees the Islamist forces who ousted longtime Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad in December as jihadists, has previously threatened to attack should the Druze be harmed.

Syrian Druze leaders had rejected the Israeli warning and declared their loyalty to a united Syria.