by Ariel Kahana, Reuters and Israel Hayom Staff
Intelligence Minister Yisrael Katz says U.S. pullout from Syria weakens Israel's position against Russia, Iran and Syria • U.S. recognition of Israeli sovereignty over Golan Heights would bolster Israeli security and reaffirm U.S.-Israel ties, he says.
Intelligence Minister Yisrael Katz
Photo: Oren Ben Hakoon
The United States
should recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights to
compensate Israel for the new, tougher reality in Syria in the wake of
President Donald Trump's decision to pull U.S. troops out of Syria, Intelligence Minister Yisrael Katz said Sunday.
Israel, like others, was caught off-guard
by Trump's announcement last week that he would withdraw all the
roughly 2,000 U.S. troops from Syria in coming weeks.
Israel seized control of the Golan Heights
in the 1967 Six-Day War. As part of the cease-fire deal reached
between Israel and Syria then, a demarcation line, commonly known as
the Purple Line, was drawn in the Golan as the de facto border between
the two countries.
Following the 1973 Yom Kippur War, another
cease-fire deal was signed, reaffirming the Purple Line's status.
U.N. Security Council Resolution 350 created a buffer zone along the
border, deploying the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force in
the area.
Israel officially annexed the Golan Heights
in 1981, but the international community has declined to recognize
Israeli sovereignty there.
"Given the American move, it is time to
take a step that will bolster Israel from a diplomatic and security
standpoint – to recognize Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights,"
Katz told Israel Hayom on Sunday.
"The American move is perceived as one
that could weaken Israel's position against Russia, Iran and Syria.
Therefore, such recognition would convey the opposite message, about
the strength of the alliance between the United States and Israel, and
Israel's status in the region.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has
broached the subject of U.S. recognition of Israeli sovereignty in the
Golan Heights with Trump administration officials several times in the
past, but so far the White House has not changed its position.
Last week, Texas Senator Ted Cruz and Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton drafted a motion
stating that as Israel's national security depends upon its permanent
control of the territory, the United States should recognize Israeli
sovereignty there.
Ariel Kahana, Reuters and Israel Hayom Staff
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/2018/12/24/us-should-recognize-israeli-sovereignty-in-golan-to-counter-syria-exit/
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