Golan Heights. Golan Heights (Golan) Dutch Heights on the map of Syria

On March 25, 2019, during a meeting, the leaders of the two states, Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu, signed a document according to which the United States recognized Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights. After this, the American president said that Israel would improve its ability to defend itself. What is so remarkable about this mountain plateau, which has not disappeared from journalistic reports for decades, and the issue of control over which is causing serious controversy?

1. IN geographically Golan Heights is a relatively small plateau of volcanic origin. It is located between Lake Kinneret and the river valley. Hula from the west, as well as the Yarmouk River valley in the south and southeast. In the northern part, these heights go deeper into Syrian territory.

2. Most of the surface of the plateau is elevated 1000 meters or more above sea level. The highest point of the Golan is considered to be a peak with an indicator of 2814 m. It is located on the Syrian territory of this geological formation. If we consider the land controlled by Israel, then its highest point is Mount Hermon, rising above the surface at 2236 m.

3. total area The Golan Heights is 1861 square meters. km. Of these, approximately 2/3 (about 1,150 sq. km) now belongs to Israel, and the rest (about 600 sq. km) is controlled by Syria. Israel also controls 7% of the Hermon Range.

4. Due to the terrain features climatic conditions in the Golan Heights are very different from the rest of Israel. In summer it is not very hot here, and in winter it is quite cool. This made it possible to actively develop, for example, travel business. Mount Hermon, covered with snow for 4 months, made it possible to create here ski resort. 2.1 million tourists come to the Golan throughout the year.

5. This region has long been actively used thermal waters. The most ancient of them are the Hamat Gader springs, located in the southwest of the plateau, which people have known about since the time of Ancient Rome.

6. The Golan is covered by an extensive network of rivers and streams. A significant part of them flows into Lake Kinneret and the Jordan River. Basically, they take water from atmospheric precipitation, feeding the main freshwater sources of Israel - the already named Lake Kinneret and the Jordan River. The country receives approximately 25% of its drinking water from the Golan Heights hydrographic network.

7. During the biblical period, the Golan Heights belonged to the region of Bashan and were inhabited by the Rephaim. The name “Golan” also dates back to the same time. It reached a plateau from biblical city Golan, which once existed in Vasan.

8. The archaeological expeditions carried out in this territory gave great amount information about ancient periods in the history of Israel. A significant number of rarities found here have expanded human knowledge about the biblical and Roman eras, as well as the more recent medieval one. Most of the ancient finds are exhibited in museums in the cities of Caprin and Jerusalem. In number ancient artifacts includes the megalith "Wheel of Spirits", dating back to the Late Cretaceous - Early Bronze Ages.

9. Although archaeological research in the Golan began in the 19th century. However, they began to be conducted systematically only after the Six-Day War, when most of this territory came under Israeli control. Jewish archaeologists have found confirmation that Jews have lived in the Golan Heights at least since the reign of Herod I. The ruins of synagogues and the remains of columns preserve evidence of this in the form of Jewish symbols and inscriptions, including in Hebrew. It is important that the finds were made in many places, and not in one excavation site.

10. Beginning in 1880, Circassians from the Russian Empire arrived and settled in the Golan. The mountaineers who lost in the Great Caucasian War were forced to leave their homes and move to the Ottoman Empire, then going to its southern borders. At first, 7 Circassian villages were formed in the Golan, with up to 3,000 inhabitants. A little later, a number of Circassians were transported to the El-Quneitra area, who organized several villages near the most important roads.

11. In 1920 Italian city San Remo hosted a meeting of representatives of the Entente countries and other states that joined them, which distributed the lands of the former Ottoman Empire in the Middle East region. Some of these territories were handed over to Britain, and some to France. At first, the Golan Heights were included in the British part, which corresponded to the geographical boundaries of Eretz Israel.

12. The British and French mandates for the Turkish Middle Eastern lands were supposed to come into effect in September 1923. However, six months before this, these states agreed to exchange part of the territories. In accordance with a separate agreement, the Golan Heights became a French mandate for Lebanon and Syria. Britain took another area for itself.

13. After the end of the French mandate in 1943, Syria declared its independence. The Golan was included in the province of Quneitra, and Jews were not allowed to enter there. This situation remained until 1967.

14. Syrian statistics say that in 1966, 147.5 thousand people lived in the Golan Heights region. 80% of them were Arabs, occupying 312 settlements, including 2 cities: El Quneitra and Fiq.

15. After the end of the First Arab-Israeli War, a whole network of artillery positions was set up on the Golan Heights, under the jurisdiction of Syria, from which Israeli territory was systematically fired upon. Over 19 years, 140 Israeli citizens were killed from shelling from this territory, and many people were injured of varying degrees of severity.

16. The situation changed after the Six Day War in 1967. Then, during fierce battles, the Israelis recaptured 2/3 of the mountain plateau from the Syrians. The demarcation line established after the end of the fighting became the de facto border between the two states.

17. After Israel captured the Golan Heights, most of the Arab population left there. There were about 7,000 people left who lived in the northern part of the region. However, Israel, fulfilling the provisions of the Separation of Forces Treaty of May 1974, was forced to liberate the largest populated area in the region.

18. Syria's attempt to return the Golan by force was made during the Yom Kippur War of 1973. Fierce fighting ensued on the plateau, but victory remained with Israel.

19. In an attempt to stabilize the region, in the late 1970s Israel provided to the Arab population Golan its citizenship. A couple of years later, the state completely declared the territory of the Golan Heights as its own, extending its jurisdiction to the lands under its control.

20. Due to the fact that both warring sides were intensively preparing for new battles in the Golan, massive mining took place neutral territories. As a result, areas were formed at the heights where people had not appeared for several decades, which helped preserve the unique natural landscape intact. And after the civil war broke out in Syria in 2011, the Israeli side updated old minefields and began installing new ones to protect its territory from terrorists entering it.

21. Israel's retention of the Golan is beneficial to the state from a security perspective. From elevated positions on the hills, modern artillery can shell half the country, which is absolutely unacceptable. It is this aspect that the Israeli leadership cites as the main argument when demanding the end of the sovereignty of the heights and the transfer of the plateau to the jurisdiction of Syria.

22. Another factor in maintaining control of the Golan Heights was the civil war in Syria. During the period of maximum intensity of fighting, almost the entire Syrian part of the heights began to be controlled by terrorists. Having a border that they could not cross saved Israel from extremely unpleasant consequences.

23. Now the Israeli part of the Golan Heights is sparsely populated. The number of people permanently living here does not exceed 20,000 people, the absolute majority of which are Druze. In order to somehow attract people to these places, since 1967, at the expense of budgetary funds, Israel has built 34 settlements and built a network of high-quality roads. After the settlement of Jews in the Golan Heights, this region began to develop by leaps and bounds.

24. Now the Golan is one of the most prosperous regions of the country. There is almost no unemployment here, and agriculture is developing well. It is estimated that on this small plot of land up to 30% of some types of vegetables and fruits are produced, up to a quarter of all wines, of which 40% are exported. In addition, more than half of the country's consumption is produced here. mineral water.

25. In addition to development Agriculture, Israel carefully protects the nature of this region. Here, hundreds of trees are planted by hand every year, millions of migratory birds are fed, and natural reserves are created and maintained.

Jews have lived in the Golan since ancient times. From 953 BC these lands belonged to the kingdom of Israel, and from 586 to the Aramaic kingdom. In 332 BC the empire of Alexander the Great came here, and then the Romans. The Golan Heights seemed to attract conquerors. What about the Jewish population? Lived under both the Macedonians and the Romans, fought for independence. But the First Jewish War ended with the destruction of the Second Temple. Not a reproach to the Jews - they always fought heroically! But there was no way against Rome, as against crowbar: the whole world belonged to it. Then Byzantium inherited Rome's rule over the Golan. And after the collapse of this empire, the Syrians ruled here. Subsequently, they were greatly hampered by the crusaders who were marching from the Holy Land to Damascus.

In the 16th century, the Golan Heights became the property of the Ottoman Empire. And they remained so until the end of World War I. Then the Entente countries divided among themselves dominance over the Turkish “splinters”.

Back in 1917, Great Britain, through the mouth of Lord Balfour, told the whole world that it looked kindly on the fact that Jews wanted to find a homeland in Palestine. However, in 1923 the British government transferred the Golan Heights to France. Mistress of the Syrian-Lebanese mandate. And Syria, feeling French support behind its back, began to drive the Jews out of “its” land. In 1944, Syria declared its independence and included the Golan within its borders. No longer could any Jew feel safe in this land. After the War of Independence of the State of Israel, the Syrians turned the Golan into a continuous military base. Shelling the Upper Galilee and the surrounding Kinneret. Comfortable from above!

War for the Golan Heights.

During the Six-Day War of 1967, Israel needed 24 hours to end Syria's 23-year domination of the Golan. But hoping that Syria will not try to regain such an important strategic point is too naive. And so, together with Egypt, which lost the Sinai Peninsula during the Six-Day War, Syria attacked the Golan. This happened on October 6, 1973. For Muslims, it is the 10th day of the month of Ramadan. For Jews - Yom Kippur. Day of forgiveness, atonement, cleansing from sins. But what kind of forgiveness is there when 1,300 Syrian tanks and 28,000 soldiers reached the Golan Heights. Syria hoped for a quick breakthrough of Israel's defenses. Here they are, bridges across the Jordan. If this happened, very soon enemy tanks would be driving through the streets of Tel Aviv.

But by 8 o’clock in the morning, Israeli tank crews in the Golan knew that they needed to prepare for battle. And by noon the tanks were ready to meet the enemy with dignity. Syria had numerical superiority, the effect of surprise, night vision devices, and strong artillery and aviation support. On the Israeli side there are only 200 tanks (6 times less than the Syrians) and 4,500 soldiers (7 times less than the enemy). And on Israel’s side there was an ardent desire to protect the Country. And Syria failed to achieve any “one-day breakthrough”.

Valley of Tears.

The Israeli reservists arrived too quickly, and Syrian casualties were surprisingly high. It was as if she was fighting not with a border garrison, but with the entire might of the Israeli Defense Forces. And where were the Syrian night vision devices? When 30 tanks were attacked at midnight by a single Israeli tank led by Lieutenant Zvi Gringold? He drove up close to the enemy (he had no night vision!), shot and changed position. It seemed to the Syrians that it was a whole formation operating! And they retreated under fire from the “Tswicki Detachment” of two tankers - Gringold and his mechanic.

There was a struggle for every meter of land. The battles near Mount Bental were especially fierce. The village of Quneitra, where Syrian forces were concentrated, was completely destroyed.

On October 8, the attack of the invaders failed. Already 10 they were knocked out beyond the Purple Line, drawn during the Six Day War.

After the incident, the valley under the mountain was nicknamed the Valley of Tears. There, near the village of El-Rum, there are still dead tanks. At the battle sites: half-filled ditches, anti-tank hedgehogs, coils of barbed wire. On - a war memorial. The remaining defensive structures and Observation deck. On the way up the mountain you are greeted by funny iron monsters. These sculptures are made from the wreckage of military vehicles left after battles. The author is Dutchman Jupp de Jong from Kibbutz Merom Golan.

Merom Golan is the first kibbutz established in the Golan after the Six Day War. Now it is peaceful and picturesque tourist centre in a rustic style with a swimming pool, jeep and all-terrain vehicle rides and a meat restaurant.

Golan Heights - disputed territory in the Middle East, currently controlled by Israel. Until 1967, it was part of the Syrian province of Quneitra, captured by Israel during the Six-Day War.

In 1981, the Israeli Knesset passed the Golan Heights Law, which unilaterally declared Israeli sovereignty over this territory. The annexation was declared invalid by UN Security Council Resolution No. 497 of December 17, 1981.

Both Israel and Syria consider the Golan Heights to be part of their territory.

The Golan Heights are a mountain plateau of volcanic origin, stretching east from Lake Tiberias (Hebrew ים כנרת‎ - Lake of Kinneret) and the Hula Valley, and further into Syria. Most of it is located at an altitude of more than 1000 meters above sea level. The area of ​​the Golan Heights occupied by Israel is about 1,150 km² with a length of 60 km and an average width of 25 km.

In the west, the plateau drops steeply towards Lake Tiberias; in the south and southeast it is limited by the deep and narrow gorge of the Yarmouk River. There are no clear natural boundaries in the east. Most of the Golan Plateau is located in Syria.

The highest point in the Israeli-controlled part of the Golan Heights is Mount Hermon with a height of 2236 m. The territory occupied by Israel accounts for 7% of the Hermon range, and highest point on Syrian territory it reaches 2814 m. At least from November to March, the peak of Hermon is covered with snow. Israel built a ski resort there.

Agriculture is well developed and consists of numerous orchards (apples, cherries), berries (raspberries, strawberries). Grape growing and winemaking enjoy great success.

At the southwestern tip of the plateau are thermal springs Hamat Gader, known since Roman times.

Golan Heights - Enough beautiful place. There are numerous nature reserves, streams and waterfalls here. The climate of the Golan is very temperate. Due to the altitude, it is not very hot here in summer and quite cold in winter, compared to the rest of Israel.

Rainfall is relatively abundant and flows into the Jordan and nearby Lake Tiberias, from which Israel gets most of its drinking water.

Settlement history

On June 9-10, 1967, during the Six-Day War, Israeli troops launched an offensive and, after 24 hours of heavy fighting, occupied the Golan Heights. Thus, the Golan Heights, having come under Syrian control in 1944 after the end of the French Mandate, were under Syrian control for 23 years.

During the Yom Kippur War in October 1973, the heights were the scene of fierce fighting. In the early days of the war, which began with a surprise attack by Egyptian and Syrian troops, Syria tried to regain control of the heights, but to no avail.

The Syrian administrative center of the Golan was the city of Quneitra, but it was abandoned by its inhabitants after the Israeli army occupied the Golan Heights during the Six-Day War.

At the same time, according to the American historian Daniel Pipes, known for his criticism of the modern Islamic world, the Syrian authorities, in order to achieve a propaganda effect, did not allow the population to return to the city to their ordinary life and have since shown the ruins of the city as a result of Israel's "unprecedented terrorism and brutality." The American organization CAMERA claims that the destruction of the city is the result of military operations by Syria, which, in an attempt to shell Israeli positions in the Golan, subjected Quneitra to powerful artillery shelling for hours in 1970-1973.

Buildings in Quneitra were also looted. Israeli officials claim that Quneitra was sacked by the retreating Syrians. The Special Representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Nils-Göran Güssing, regards this version as unlikely, given the extremely short period of time between the erroneous radio announcement of the fall and the actual fall of the city several hours later. He concluded that "responsibility for carrying out this extensive sack of the city of Quneitra lay largely with Israeli forces."

The US Committee on Refugees and Immigrants reported that "the Israelis leveled the city with bulldozers and dynamite before withdrawing."

Since 1974, Quneitra has been located in a demilitarized no-man's land between the Israeli and Syrian borders, controlled by UN forces. The city remains virtually uninhabited to this day.

The capital of the Israeli-controlled part of the Golan is the city of Katzrin.

In the late 1970s, the government granted Israeli citizenship to Syrian citizens living in the Heights, and in November 1981, Israel officially annexed the Golan Heights, extending its jurisdiction over it. The act did not receive international recognition.

Today, about 39 thousand people live in the Golan. Of the Syrian settlements, 4 villages remain: Majdal Shams, Masada, Bukata and Ein Kiniye; most of their inhabitants are Druze.

A large number of old Syrian minefields remain in the Golan Heights. Most of them are fenced off and marked with warning signs, but they have not been neutralized. As a result, natural nature has been preserved in a large area and there are places where no human has actually set foot since 1967.

After the occupation of the Golan Heights, Israeli fortified posts were equipped here, equipped with electronic reconnaissance equipment; the largest electronic reconnaissance stations are located on Mount Hermon (60 km from Damascus), as well as on the heights of Hermonit, Tel Fares, Avital and Booster.

Since the beginning of 2011, IDF units began laying new minefields in the Golan Heights. The decision to mine the border again was made after Palestinians, who came from Syria, managed to break through the border fence and enter Israeli territory, while the old mines did not work. Additionally, by 2012, Israel had built a separation wall there. The IDF is strengthening a wall along the ceasefire line and installing additional surveillance capabilities across the border to prevent possible infiltration attempts by Syrian refugees or militants, the Guardian newspaper reports.

In December 1981, by decision of the Knesset, Israeli jurisdiction was extended to the Golan region.

Israel's annexation of the Golan Heights is not internationally recognized, and UN Security Council Resolution 497 considers the area part of the Syrian occupied territories.

The Syrian population of the Golan before the capture of the territory by the Israeli Army was about 116,000 people. During the Six Day War the largest part this population fled (according to the Israeli version) or was expelled by the Israelis (according to the Syrian version). According to the Syrian version, Israel prohibited these people from returning after the war. After the Six Day War, only 6,400 Syrian citizens, mostly Druze, remained in the Golan. In 1981, following the annexation of the Golan by Israel, they were offered Israeli citizenship.

Most Druze initially refused Israeli citizenship, but eventually accepted it. They currently have dual citizenship. Today, according to Syrian data, 16 thousand Syrians live in the Golan.

Since 1967, Israel has built 34 settlements in the Golan. Their total population in 2007 is about 20 thousand people. The population of Druze villages in the Golan is about 18 thousand people. In general, a significant part of the territory is sparsely populated.

In 1981, the Israeli Knesset passed the Golan Heights Law, which unilaterally declared Israeli sovereignty over this territory. The annexation was declared invalid by the UN Security Council Resolution of December 17, 1981 and condemned by the UN General Assembly in 2008.

The issue of possible negotiations between Israel and Syria on the Golan Heights issue has a long history. As a rule, this is associated with internal political events in Israel and/or Syria, or with another international initiative.

In front of you detailed map Golan Heights with names of cities and towns in Russian.

Move the map while holding it with the left mouse button. You can move around the map by clicking on one of the four arrows in the upper left corner. You can change the scale using the scale on the right side of the map or turning the mouse wheel.

What country is the Golan Heights located in? Golan Heights is located in Israel. This is wonderful a nice place

, with its own history and traditions. Coordinates of the Golan Heights: north latitude and east longitude (show on large map).

Virtual walk The “little man” figurine above the scale will help you make virtual walk through the cities of the Golan Heights. By clicking and holding the left mouse button, drag it to any place on the map and you will go for a walk, while inscriptions with the approximate address of the area will appear in the upper left corner. Select the direction of movement by clicking on the arrows in the center of the screen.

The “Satellite” option at the top left allows you to see a relief image of the surface. In the "Map" mode you will have the opportunity to familiarize yourself in detail with, northeast of Lake Kinneret. The Golan Heights are a tiny, sparsely populated area that is still disputed by Syria, which surrendered the Golan to Israel during the 1967 Six-Day War. The strategic importance of the Golan Heights for Israel lies in the ability to control southwestern Syria from them, including Damascus itself, which is visible from the heights in cold and clear weather. Today there are several Israeli settlements in the Golan, the largest of which is the village of Katzrin with a population of about 7 thousand people.

Coordinates: 33 northern latitude, 35.75 east longitude



Golan Heights on the map, which can be controlled (scaled and moved)



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