 "An Israeli armoured vehicle maneuvers along the security fence near the so-called Alpha Line that separates the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights from Syria, in the town of Majdal Shams, December 15, 2024. AP")
Israel is planning to expand its settlements in the occupied Golan Heights, citing threats from Syria. Israel’s government has decided to double its population on the rocky plateau, which was captured by Israeli forces during the Six-Day War of 1967.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu justified the move as necessary as a “new front” had opened up on the Israel-Syria border after Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was overthrown by rebel forces.
“Strengthening the Golan is strengthening the State of Israel, and it is especially important at this time. We will continue to hold onto it, cause it to blossom, and settle in it,” he said in a statement.
Let’s take a closer look.
Israel’s occupation of Golan Heights
Located in southwestern Syria, the Golan Heights is a 1,000-square-mile (about 2,590 square km) plateau bordering Israel, Lebanon and Jordan.
Israeli forces captured the Golan Heights in the 1967 Six-Day War, a brief conflict between Israel and its Arab neighbours.
It unilaterally annexed the strategic plateau in 1981, which was not recognised by most nations. Syria continues to hold part of the Golan and demands Israel’s withdrawal from the occupied areas.
In December of 1981, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) passed resolution 497, declaring the Golan was still an occupied territory and Israel’s annexation to be “null and void and without international legal effect”.
Syria tried to unsuccessfully retake the Golan in the 1973 Arab-Israeli war. Israel and Syria signed an armistice in 1974 and the plateau has since been relatively quiet, as per a Reuters report.
In 2000, a possible return of the Golan and a peace agreement figured in the highest-level discussions between Israel and Syria. However, the talks failed.
Except for the United States and Israel, the entire global community considers the Golan Heights to be Syrian territory occupied by Israel, noted Independent.
The Israeli-occupied Golan has a population of about 55,000 people, of which 24,000 are Druze, an Arab minority who mostly identify as Syrians, Reuters cited analyst Avraham Levine of the Alma Research and Education Center as saying.
The Druze people did not flee the 1967 war and are currently residing alongside 30 Israeli settlements in the Golan Heights, as per Independent.
Why Israel wants to expand in the Golan
Israeli troops moved into the demilitarised buffer zone in the Syrian-controlled Golan Heights soon after the fall of the Assad regime.
“We will not allow any hostile force to establish itself on our border,” Netanyahu said earlier.
As per Independent, Israeli forces have entered beyond the demilitarised buffer zone and into Syrian territory. Defending the move, the Israeli prime minister said it “ensures our security and sovereignty” and that “the Golan will be part of the State of Israel for eternity”.
The move has been widely criticised, including by the UN.
On Sunday (December 15), Netanyahu’s office said the government had approved an over 40-million-shekel ($11 million) plan to double the population in the Golan. It said the PM submitted the proposal to the government “in light of the war and the new front facing Syria, and out of a desire to double the population of the Golan”.
Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have slammed Israel’s plan.
Despite the developments, Israel claims it does not want to start a conflict with Syria , with Netanyahu saying his country has “no interest in a conflict with Syria”.
“We will determine Israeli policy regarding Syria according to the reality on the ground,” he said.
However, former Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert has said he did not “see any reason” for the country to expand in the Golan.
“The prime minister [Netanyahu] said we are not interested in expanding the confrontation with Syria and we hope we will not need to fight against the new rebels that are presently taking over Syria. So why do we do precisely the opposite?” he told BBC World.
“We have enough problems to deal with,” he added.
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The Golan’s importance for Israel
The Golan Heights holds strategic importance for Israel. According to the Independent report, when the plateau was part of Syria until 1967, it acted as a vantage point to shell northern Israel.
The Golan is just around 60 kilometres from Damascus, with the top of the Heights reportedly providing a view of the Syrian capital. It also oversees much of southern Syria, giving an advantage to Israel to keep an eye on Syrian movements, the British newspaper noted.
Syria’s 13-year-long civil war also emphasised to Israel to keep the Golan Heights as a buffer zone between Israeli towns and the unrest of its neighbour, reported Reuters.
The Golan’s fertile land and water resources also make it a desired territory for both Israel and Syria.
With input from agencies