Native to the Middle East, the Druze are a particular ethnic and religious group. They are Arabic speakers. The majority of sources estimate that there are between one and two and a half million Druze people in the world, however, there is no precise census. Syria has the highest concentration, followed by Israel and the West Bank, Lebanon, and Jordan. The remainder are dispersed over the globe, including the United States, Europe, Australia, South America, Canada, and other nations.

The Druze are followers of the Tawheed faith that is based on the belief in the oneness of God. The Druze faith was practiced as early as the eleventh century. Among the numerous theological inspirations that had a profound effect on the faith were the Quran, Christian and Jewish scripture, Greek philosophy, Eastern mysticism, and other ancient concepts. The Druze progressive approach, which encompassed the separation of church and state, equal treatment of men and women, and the prohibition of slavery, was seen as unusual, especially in the early years.

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The Druze, led by their own traditional leadership and spiritual elite, known as ''the Uqqal'', maintained a fiercely independent way of life under Ottoman and then British Mandate administration. Druze leaders established the "Unit of the Minorities" to fight alongside Jewish soldiers during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War after formally joining Israeli forces. When the State of Israel was established, the Druze community decided to fully commit to the new country. This led to a historic moment in 1956 when the Israeli government mandated military conscription for Druze men, making them the only Arabic-speaking group subject to the draft, at the request of Druze community leaders. Due to the high enrollment rates and substantial sacrifices made by Druze soldiers in the Israel Defense Forces—many of whom have advanced to the highest positions of command, security, and diplomacy—a strong social link known in Israel as the "Covenant of Blood" was formed.

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The Druze were granted their own independent religious courts to handle domestic issues like marriage and divorce when Israel formally recognized them as a separate religious community from Muslims in 1957. In contrast to the highly integrated Galilee Druze, many Golan Druze have historically maintained their civic loyalty to Syria; however, a growing number of younger Golan Druze have started applying for Israeli citizenship in recent years. Israel extended its administration over the Golan Heights following the 1967 Six-Day War, bringing a separate population of Druze under its control. Approximately 150,000 Israeli Druze people currently reside in northern towns, including Daliyat al-Karmel, Isfiya, and Beit Jann.