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The Golan Heights are higher than the the surrounding Israeli land. When the Syrians had control of the Heights, they'd fire rockets at civilian settlements in Israel from the vantage point.

Today, Israel uses the dead soil of the Heights for agricultural research to develop drought resistant crops.

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13y ago
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10y ago

The Golan Heights are an area of high ground.

West of the Golan Heights is a somewhat lower area that has been part of Israel since at least 1948. In that area are farms operated by Israeli citizens, and towns populated by Israeli citizens.

While the Golan was an undisputed part of Syria, heavy artillery were often based there and randomly fired heavy artillery shells into the Israeli valley west of it. This not only damaged farm land but also caused considerable stress among the Israelis who lived there.

Therefore when Syrian forces invaded Israel in 1967 and were subsequently pushed out, the Golan Heights were occupied by Israel. That had the effect of reducing the artillery fire into the valley below.

As is typical in these cases, the Israelis did not retaliate in kind. There was never a peacetime shelling of the Syrian regional capital of Quneitra or any other place in the Western Quneitra government (even prior to the establishment of UNDOF in 1974). Israel has asked Syria to come to Quneitra which was heavily destroyed in the wake of Arab-Israeli War of 1973 and rebuil it, even though it sits in the UNDOF zone. To date, Quneitra is still a mound of rubble since Syria would prefer it be a testimony to "Israeli cruelty" that never actually occurred.

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9y ago

On very many occasions during the early 1970s, rockets were fired from the Golan Heights into the nearby lowlands, making it impossible for the Israelis in the Hula valley to conduct normal life. Had our neighbors to the north not insisted upon shooting at us, we could have left the Golan Heights in Syrian hands.

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13y ago

The area known as the Golan Heights overlooks a large area of northern Israel that includes

towns, farms, and kibbutzim. The valley is within easy range of artillery situated on the Heights,

and the Golan was used extensively and often for that purpose before Israel took control of it.

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12y ago

The Golan heights are not far from Damascus and were, relatively recently, a part of Syria. On the other hand, they overlook a large area in Israel and were sometimes used by the Syrians to fire rockets at Israeli towns or Kibbutzim.

For the above reasons, both sides see the Heights as an important strategic asset.

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Q: Why are the Golan Heights of such strategic importance to Israel?
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Who was given Golan Heights in 1981?

Nobody was "given" the Golan Heights in 1981. Israel conquered the Golan Heights from Syria in 1967 and repelled a Syrian invasion to retake the Golan Heights in 1973. By the end of the Arab-Israeli population of 1973, the Arab population of the Golan Heights and its strategic value was immense. Therefore, in 1981, Prime Minister Menachem Begin decided to annex the territory of the Golan Heights to the Israel. This has been seen by most international observers as a violation of UNSC Resolution 242 and 338 which requires that Israel return the Golan Heights to Syria in exchange for peace, not to acquire it. Israel has responded by saying that it fully intends to return the territory to Syria should a peace treaty be struck, but it sees no reason why it has to leave the Golan Heights under military administration pending such a resolution as opposed to a civilian one.


What is Israel's highest peak?

Golan Heights


What country lost golan heights to israel?

Syria


When did Syria receive the Golan Heights?

The Golan Heights were a part of Syria from the Ottoman Period and were part of Syria during the French Mandate. It was only in 1967 that Israel conquered the Golan Heights from Syria.


What unites Israel with the Golan Heights?

The Golan Heights is administered by the Israeli government due to UNSC Resolutions 242 & 338/339 - the armistices of 1967 and 1973 between Israel and Syria among others. However, the annexation of the Golan Heights to Israel and its incorporation into the Northern District of Israel in 1981 is considered illegal in international law.


What Opposed the creation of Israel and lost the golan heights?

Syria


What northern region is currently occupied by israel?

The Golan Heights.


The Golan Heights and the Negev Desert are found in the country of?

Israel ;]


What does golan heights have to do with the creation of Israel?

Nothing. The Golan Heights was an undisputed Syrian territory until 1967. Israel was created in 1948. The Golan Heights became part of the Arab-Israeli Conflict in 1967 when Israeli soldiers occupied the area while fighting Syria.


What country is the Golan Heights located in?

The Golan Heights is a strategic plateau and mountainous region at the southern end of the Anti-Lebanon Mountains and remains a hotly contested land between both Syria and Israel. The area is currently governed by Israel.


What area is disputed by Israel and Syria?

The disputed territory is a de jure Syrian territory under de facto Israeli Occupation and Civil Administration: the Golan Heights. The Golan Heights are a Syrian Mountain Range and hill-country just north of western Jordan. This territory is small, but strategic, giving Israel a position where Syria cannot take military advantage of it. Currently, UNDOF monitors the border between the Golan Heights and Syria.


What are some other names for Golan Heights?

The other names for Golan Heights that are commonly used are 'Golan' and 'Syrian Golan'. The territory is recognized as Syrian across the world but has been occupied by Israel since 1967.