Dr. Salim Brik, is a lecturer and researcher in political science, looks on during an interview with AFP in his house in the northern Israeli city of Karmiel on October 4, 2026. The Golan's 26,000 Druze have historically rejected outward displays of allegiance to Israel, which captured the territory from Syria in 1967 and annexed it in 1981, with those who adopt the nationality ostracised. But a shift in attitudes has picked up after Israel carried out military strikes in Syria in 2025. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP via Getty Images)