Key Facts about Golan Heights

About Golan Heights:

• It is a rocky plateau in south-western Syria, about 60km (40 miles) south-west of Damascus (the capital of Syria).
• It's considered occupied territory under international law and UN Security Council resolutions.
• It covers an area of 1,000 sq km.
• It is bounded by the Jordan River and the Sea of Galilee on the west, Mount Hermon on the north, the seasonal Wadi Al-Ruqqad River on the east, and the Yarmuk River on the south.
• History:
  • Israel seized the Golan Heights from Syria in the closing stages of the 1967 Six-Day War.
  • Most of the Syrian Arab inhabitants fled the area during the conflict.
  • An armistice line was established, and the region came under Israeli military control. Almost immediately, Israel began to settle the Golan.
  • Syria tried to retake the Golan Heights during the 1973 Middle East war, but the attempt was thwarted.
  • Both countries signed an armistice in 1974, and a UN observer force has been in place on the ceasefire line since 1974.
  • Israel unilaterally annexed the Golan Heights in 1981. The move was not recognised internationally.
  • About 20,000 Jewish settlers live on the Golan Heights, which is also home to Israeli military bases and listening posts.
• The settlements are considered illegal under international law, though Israel disputes this.
• The settlers live alongside some 20,000 Syrians, most of them Druze Arabs, who did not flee when the Golan was captured.
• Strategic Importance:
  • The Syrian capital, Damascus, can be clearly seen from the top of the Golan Hills.
  • It overlooks northern Israel’s Galilee region and the Sea of Galilee and dominates the route to Damascus on the Syrian-controlled side.
  • Importantly, the Golan Heights shares a border with Jordan and Lebanon.
  • The area is also a key source of water for an arid region. Rainwater from the Golan's catchment feeds into the Jordan River.

Q1: Who are Druze?

The Druze are an Arab and Arabic-speaking ethnoreligious community that resides in Syria, Lebanon, Israel and Jordan. Druze population is made up of more than 1 million people.

Source: Hezbollah, Israel and the Golan Heights: What is happening and why?