The United States of America recognition of Golan Heights as an occupied territory of Israel Monday sparked global condemnations and criticisms.
President Donald Trump, Monday, officially recognised Israeli sovereignty over the occupied Golan Heights, seized from Syria in 1967, in a move hailed as “historic” by Israel’s prime minister.
Benjamin Netanyahu, who faces an election next month, was by Mr Trump’s side as he signed the proclamation.
Israel annexed the Golan Heights in 1981, in a move that is not recognised internationally.
A spokesman for United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Monday he was “clear that the status of Golan has not changed”.
Syria reacted swiftly to Trump’s proclamation, calling it a “blatant attack” on its sovereignty and territorial integrity and saying it had a right to reclaim the Golan Hieghts.
The Syrian foreign minister said US recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights will lead to its isolation.
Minister Walid al-Moualem added: “No matter how many years have passed, this will not change the fact that the Golan is an occupied Syrian territory.”
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Gaza-based resistance faction Hamas both slammed the decision.
In a statement released by his office, Abbas said: “There is no legitimacy that can override UN Security Council resolutions, the UN General Assembly or the Arab Peace Initiative.”
Meanwhile, Ismail Haniya, the leader of Hamas in Gaza, said the Golan Heights would “forever remain an integral part of Syria”.
At the UN, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is “clear that the status of Golan has not changed,” UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.
“The UN’s policy on Golan is reflected in the relevant resolutions of the Security Council and that policy has not changed,” he added.
A UN Security Council resolution adopted unanimously by the 15-member body in 1981 declared that Israel’s “decision to impose its laws, jurisdiction and administration in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights is null and void and without international legal effect”. It also demanded Israel rescind its decision.
Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement rejecting the US move and saying the Golan Heights are occupied Arab land.
NATO ally, Turkey termed the US recognition unacceptable and said it would take action against it, including at the UN, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said.
Nigeria joined in condemning the action. The Arab League condemned the move saying that “Trump’s recognition does not change the area’s status.”
The announcement triggered direct or implied criticism from European, as well as Middle Eastern, countries and organisations, including the UK, Germany, France, the European Union, Egypt, Russia and Venezuela.
The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela categorically rejects Trump’s government intention to recognise the sovereignty of Israel over the Syrian territory of the Golan Heights, in violation of Security Council resolutions and the UN Charter.
- Why are the Golan Heights so important?
For decades, Washington took the same line as the UN, but last weekMr. Trump announced his plans to overturn decades of US policy in a tweet.
In response, Syria has vowed to recover the area “through all available means”.
But Mr Netanyahu told reporters gathered in Washington on Monday that Israel “shall never give it up”.
“Your proclamation comes at a time when Golan is more important than ever for our security,” he said, citing threats from Iranian forces in Syria.
It is, he added, “a two-fold act of historic justice”.
“Israel won the Golan Heights in a just war of self-defence and the Jewish people’s roots in the Golan go back thousands of years,” Mr Netanyahu said.
However, there is little sign any other countries will be following in US footsteps, which a Syrian foreign ministry source described as a “humiliating blow to the international community”, according to the state-run news agency Sana.
Russia – which has been providing military support to President Bashar al-Assad in the Syrian conflict – warned the decree “could drive a new wave of tensions in the Middle East region”.
Meanwhile, Turkey – which has been supporting the Syrian opposition – said it was “impossible” to accept the US decree, adding it planned to take action against it at the UN.
What are the Golan Heights?
The region is located about 60km (40 miles) south-west of the Syrian capital, Damascus, and covers about 1,200 sq km (400 sq miles).
Israel seized most of the Golan Heights from Syria in the closing stages of the 1967 Middle East war, and thwarted a Syrian attempt to retake the region during the 1973 war.
The two countries agreed a disengagement plan the following year that involved the creation of a 70km-long (44-mile) demilitarised zone patrolled by a United Nations observer force. But they remained technically in a state of war.
(BBC NEWS, Aljazeera)
