Friday, 22 March, 2019 - 12:30
An Israeli soldier stands next to signs pointing out distances to different cities, on Mount Bental, an observation post in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on May 10, 2018. (Reuters)
Asharq Al-Awsat
US President Donald Trump’s recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights drew on Friday wide condemnation in the region and beyond.
Trump’s statement on Thursday marked a dramatic shift in US policy over the status of a disputed area that Israel captured from Syria in the 1967 Middle East war and annexed in 1981 - a move not recognized internationally.
The Gulf Cooperation Council expressed regret at Trump’s statement, saying it “will not change the reality that (...) the Arab Golan Heights is Syrian land occupied by Israel by military force in 1967.”
“The statements by the American president undermine the chances of achieving a just and comprehensive peace,” said Abdul Latif Al Zayani, the GCC secretary general.
Egypt said it considers the Golan Heights as occupied Syrian land, rejecting Trump’s stance.
In a statement carried by state news agency MENA, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry cited UN Security Council resolution 497 of 1981 which rejected Israel's annexation of the territory.
The ministry "stressed the importance that everybody should respect the resolutions of international legitimacy and the United Nations Charter in respect of the inadmissibility of acquiring land by force," the statement said.
Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit said the statement was “completely beyond international law”.
The Arab League, which suspended Syria in 2011, said Trump’s comment paved “the way for official American recognition” of Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.
“No country, no matter how important it is, can make such a decision."
In a speech at a meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, he said: “we cannot allow the legitimization of the occupation of the Golan Heights”.
The European Union said its position on the status of the Golan Heights was unchanged.
“The European Union, in line with international law, does not recognize Israel’s sovereignty over the territories occupied by Israel since June 1967, including the Golan Heights and does not consider them to be part of Israel’s territory,” an EU spokeswoman said.
France's Foreign Ministry said Israeli sovereignty over the Golan would be contrary to international law.
“US President Trump’s unfortunate statement yesterday has brought the region to the brink of a new crisis,” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Trump's comments "can destabilize the already fragile situation in the Middle East."
"The very idea is not helping the goals of the Middle East settlement, quite the other way round," he said. "Right now, it's merely a declaration. Let's hope it will stay this way."
“The Syrian nation is more determined to liberate this precious piece of Syrian national land through all available means,” the Syrian state news agency cited an official source as saying.
The Golan Heights would remain “Syrian, Arab”, it said, saying the statement showed contempt for international law.
Iran said the US position was illegal and unacceptable, and Russia said a change in the status of the Golan Heights would be a direct violation of UN resolutions.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pressed the United States to recognize its claim and raised that possibility in his first White House meeting with Trump in February 2017. Trump’s statement has given a boost to Netanyahu in the middle of his re-election campaign.
Netanyahu has praised Trump for “making history” with the statement.
“After 52 years it is time for the United States to fully recognize Israel’s Sovereignty over the Golan Heights, which is of critical strategic and security importance to the State of Israel and Regional Stability!” Trump wrote on Twitter on Thursday.
Trump’s move followed the US recognition in December 2017 of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital - a decision that also drew international criticism as the disputed city’s status remains at the heart of the Israel-Palestinian conflict.
https://aawsat.com/english/home/art...y-shift-golan-heights-draws-wide-condemnation