Israel carried out strikes against Hezbollah in Lebanon in retaliation for a rocket attack which caused the death of 12 Israelis on Saturday July 27 in the Golan Heights. If the Lebanese Islamist movement denies being the author, Israel promised on Sunday to “ strike the enemy with force ».
For Israel, Hezbollah “crossed all red lines” after the deadly attack on the Golan annexed. The village of Majdel Shams, south of the Golan Heights, mourns the death of 12 victims, most of them children aged 10 to 16, victims of a raid on its football stadium, annexed by Israel. After a series of strikes on Lebanese territory the previous night in response to this strike attributed to Lebanese Hezbollah, Israel promised on Sunday to “ strike the enemy with force “. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the movement will pay “a high price”. It is the deadliest attack against Israeli civilians since October 7, 2023. And the Golan Heights is not witnessing conflict for the first time.
A territory at the center of tensions
The Golan Heights, conquered by Israel at the expense of Syria in 1967, is a strategic area. Both on a military and economic level. Regularly, the territory is therefore the target of tensions.
Bordered by Lebanon to the north, Syria to the east, Israel to the west and Jordan to the south, the Golan Heights overlooks the Jordan Valley and the Israeli Galilee to the west, and the Damascus Plateau, to the east. The territory is the subject of regular tensions between Syria and Israel.
The Golan Heights has changed status from 1967. When Syria gained independence in 1946, the Golan was located in Syrian territory. But Israel now claims sovereignty after the conquest of the Golan in 1967. During this war, called Six DaysIsrael had seized Sinai, the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and East Jerusalem. The Golan Heights again witnessed heavy fighting during Israel’s Yom Kippur War in 1973. However, the territorial boundaries remained almost unchanged. Israel and Syria are thus separated by a demilitarized zone monitored by the United Nations since 1974.
During these wars, nearly 150,000 people, the majority of the Syrian inhabitants of the Golan, fled. Next to 20,000 Israeli settlers have settled there. They coexist with 18,000 Druzea religious Arab minority, who reject Israeli nationality.
In the 1990s, Syria demanded from Israel the total restitution of the Golan Heights up to the shores of Lake Tiberias. From there, incredible tensions ensued. The outbreak of war in Syria in 2011 gave rise to fighting between rebels and the Syrian regime. On May 14, the anniversary of the creation of Israel, the Israeli army opened fire against Palestinian refugees and Syrians who were trying to cross the ceasefire line. Thirty people lost their lives, and that was just the beginning. Mortar fire from Syria are become frequent on the board. Israel hits back every time.
Today, the Golan Heights becomes the center of tensions between Lebanese Hezbollah and Israel. In mid-March 2019, Israel accused Hezbollah of secretly establishing a military network in the Syrian Golan commanded by a figure in the Lebanese Shiite movement. Tensions were further reignited after the attack on Saturday July 27. The death of 12 Israelis angered Netanyahu. Israel’s Prime Minister promises heavy retaliation.
What is the international status of the Golan Heights?
A territory with such strategic position and water resources did not fail to provoke an international reaction.
In December 1981, Israel annexed two thirds of this territory. The UN condemned this annexation, calling it “null and void”. The United States, for its part, became the first state to recognize the Israeli annexation of the Golan, via a decree issued by Donald Trump in 2019. At the time, the former President of the United States declared “After 52 years, it is time for the United States to fully recognize Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan, which has strategic importance for the State of Israel and regional stability”. The world has its eyes fixed on the current situation in the Golan, fearing a regional conflagration linked to the ongoing war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas.
