Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz instructed the IDF on Saturday evening to prepare to "defend a Druze village in southern Syria" after Syrian forces launched a security operation in the area.
The IDF will either attack the Syrian forces if there is a problem or if it is just a threat to keep distance from Israel, The Jerusalem Post learned later on Saturday.
Jaramana, a city on the outskirts of Damascus inhabited by both Christian Syrians and Druze, has been the center of unrest and clashes between Syrian security forces and local Druze brigades.
"We will not allow the terrorist regime of radical Islam in Syria to harm the Druze," Netanyahu and Katz said in a statement. "If the regime harms the Druze, it will be harmed by us. We are committed to our Druze brothers in Israel to do everything to prevent harm to their Druze brothers in Syria, and we will take all necessary steps to maintain their security."
On Saturday, a member of Syria's security forces was reportedly killed in clashes in the city between security forces and members of the local 'Jaramana Shield' brigade, Al-Araby reported.
Israel accused of 'tempting' Syria's Druze
Local sources reported in February that the IDF had offered the Druze population of southern Syria employment opportunities within Israel. Sources from southern Syria in the al-Quneitra province spoke with the Saudi news network Al-Arabiya, claiming that the IDF made "tempting offers" to the province's residents.
According to the report, sources in the al-Quneitra area claimed that the IDF offered the residents the opportunity to work within Israel during the day and return home in the evening, the same way that the Gazans were allowed to work in Israel before October 7.
"The IDF expressed to those who were offered work that it wanted to issue entry permits that would enable them to enter Israel and work there, just as it did with Palestinians who work in Israel," one southern Syrian resident was quoted as saying.
Yonah Jeremy Bob contributed to this report.