Sunday, Nov 17, 2002
Cold peace prevails along Golan Heights
By Atul Aneja
QNAYTRA (Golan Heights) Nov. 16. The road from Damascus climbs steadily till it reaches Qnaytara a major town in the Golan Heights, which has witnessed bitter fighting between the Syrian and the Israeli forces in the past. Soon after the outskirts of Damascus are crossed, the urban landscape gives way to vast stretches of farmland. Rows of fruit trees including apple, apricot and cherries covering acres of land can be seen stretching out on either side of the road.
The picturesque setting is, however, broken by the craggy brown hills that surround the area not very far away. Perched on heights of these barren elevations, Israeli military posts can be seen, dominating the area and serving, at once, a reminder that the Syrians and the Israelis who have clashed bitterly for the control of this zone are yet to arrive at a final settlement. Israel in 1967 captured 1860 sqkm of the Golan Heights— a strategically vital area that belonged to Syria and stretches from Mount Hermon near the Lebanese border to Lake Tiberias, a major source of water, to the South.
But the Syrians managed to re-establish control over nearly one-thirds of the Golan Heights in 1973. The Former U.S. Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger, played a key role in arranging a U.N. enforced truce in this area then. His legacy is evident as the U.N. today maintains a high profile presence here, to ensure that a demilitarised zone that separates Israeli and Syrian troops is maintained. White U.N. flagged vehicles also carry out regular patrols while U.N. observers man a string of posts round the clock to detect the first signs of trouble. Most of these posts overlook Syrian villages that are perched on the hillsides and are located along either side of the ceasefire line. The human tragedy of this artificial territorial separation is evident, as the ceasefire line has split families, who now adopt desperate measures to maintain contacts with each other.
Under the strict gaze of the U.N. observers and monitoring by Israeli and Syrian personnel who are located at not too great a distance, relatives use megaphones to speak to each other while standing on either side of the ceasefire line. While the truce is holding out, several factors are blocking a final settlement between Syria and Israel over the Golan Heights. The Golan Heights, for instance are of crucial strategic importance. Syrian officials point out that by holding these heights, Israel can dominate key portions of Lebanon, Syria, Jordan as well as the Palestinian areas. From Golan, Lebanon, it is said, is only 25 km away while Jordan lies at a distance of around 60 km. From these elevations, active surveillance on Damascus, which is nearly within Israeli artillery range, can be maintained. The Golan Heights also overlook the Palestinian areas, which are only 20 km away.
Access to water is another factor that has heightened the importance of the Golan area. The Golan Heights, for instance, overlook part of the Jordan river system, especially the tributaries of Dan, Banias and Hasbani till they enter into Lake Tiberias. According to Syrian officials, Syria has been demanding the right to access one thirds of the waters of Lake Tiberias because of its contiguity with the international border. The Golan Heights are also believed to have large reserves of underground water, a particularly valuable asset on account of the region's chronic water shortages. Besides, the bitterness between Syria and Israel is also holding up chances of durable peace between the two sides. Syrians, for instance, have not forgotten the systematic demolition of the entire town of Qnaytra, which the Israelis, using bulldozers and explosives, carried out prior to their exit in 1973. The Syrians have refused to rebuild Qnaytra, which, for them stands as a monument of Israeli misdemeanours, to be witnessed by the rest of the world.
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