Partly conquered in 1967
Highly coveted over the centuries, occupied by Herod, by the Franks and the Ottomans then by Syria in 1946, the Golan (biblical name of this region) was conquered on June 9, 1967 by Israel after fighting with the Syrian army. An additional pocket of approximately 510 km² was occupied by Israel during the October 1973 War, then returned in 1974, under an agreement, along with a small part of the territories occupied in 1967.
The 1974 agreement created a nearly 80 kilometer long demilitarized buffer zone in southwest Syria, where a UN Disengagement Observation Force (UNDF) is responsible for monitoring compliance. of this agreement. Some 1,200 km² of the Golan Heights, also bordering Lebanon and Jordan, were however annexed by Israel on December 14, 1981, a measure not recognized by the international community, apart from the United States since 2019. Dozens of Thousands of Syrians fled or were expelled during the 1967 war. Others remained in the part controlled by Israel.
Today, around 30,000 Israeli citizens live in 34 localities of the annexed Golan, to which are added 23,000 Druze, a community whose religion comes from Islam, who mostly claim to be Syrian while having the status of residents of Israel.
On Sunday, the Israeli government approved a project aimed at doubling the population in the annexed Golan, for a budget of 40 million shekels (10.6 million euros).
Why the overthrow of Assad reshuffles the cards
The overthrow of Assad has reshuffled the cards. The ceasefire line was considered relatively calm until the civil war in Syria in 2011. Tensions were reignited when Hezbollah and Iran, two great enemies of Israel, moved closer to the Assad clan . And since the start of the war in Gaza triggered by the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, the Lebanese Islamist movement has fired several times in the direction of the Golan.
On December 8, a few hours after the fall of Assad, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that he had ordered the army to “take control” of the buffer zone, stressing that the presence of Israeli troops there was temporary. , until security in the area can be guaranteed. The next day, he affirmed that the annexed Golan belonged to Israel “for eternity”. His Defense Minister, Israel Katz, indicated on December 13 that he had instructed the army to “prepare for [y] stay” all winter.
The UN considers the takeover of the buffer zone a “violation” of the 1974 disengagement agreement.
The water question at the heart of the conflict
The Golan is home to important springs, particularly those of Banyas, which feeds the Jordan River. The Hasbani, which has its source in Lebanon, crosses the Golan before emptying into the Jordan, as does the Dan River.
