should israel return the golan heights to syria

[ash874]

i hear time and time again how it is against intl law for israel to annex the golan heights.
i want to hear your opinion on the following:
was it not against intl law for syria to attack israel in the first place?
i mean if an israeli tank shells an arab house thats a crime, so how come thousands of syrian tanks shelling israeli houses is not a crime?
if you agree that syria breached intl law by attacking israel, than should it not compensate israel?
maybe a valid argument would be that once syria ressurected all the israelis it has unlawfully killed than israel should return land it unlawfuly annexed? and that is without even speaking of compensation. its like you break my car and all i demand is a new car and not any kind of fine for you.
what do you think about this?

[alhoon]

About the heights of Golan: I don't have enough knowledge about the subject, so I'll just discuss what you said: If Syria launched an attack against international law on Israel, and lost, then it should recompensate Israel. On the other hand, for Syria to do that, they should discuss with Israel about reparations. In these recompensation talks for example, Syria may not offer Golan heights but money or something else.
An unlawful attack doesn't allow an unlawful occupation from the defender to the aggressor.

But Golan heights aside... Israel is evicting Palestinian people from their homes in Jerusalem, settling, occupying parts of the city, leaving many people in a lack of water there etc. To me that's more important trangression of international law than is the occupation of Golan Heights. I'm not saying Israel should withdraw from Jerusalem, since they had a strong presense there for milennia but they need to back away somewhat IMO.

[Armija]

About the heights of Golan: I don't have enough knowledge about the subject, so I'll just discuss what you said: If Syria launched an attack against international law on Israel, and lost, then it should recompensate Israel. On the other hand, for Syria to do that, they should discuss with Israel about reparations. In these recompensation talks for example, Syria may not offer Golan heights but money or something else.
An unlawful attack doesn't allow an unlawful occupation from the defender to the aggressor.

But Golan heights aside... Israel is evicting Palestinian people from their homes in Jerusalem, settling, occupying parts of the city, leaving many people in a lack of water there etc. To me that's more important trangression of international law than is the occupation of Golan Heights. I'm not saying Israel should withdraw from Jerusalem, since they had a strong presense there for milennia but they need to back away somewhat IMO.

Well said.. +1 rep

[caratacus]

From a military perspective, retention of the Golan Heights is logical because it commands a position to fire rockets into Israel and Syria has proved itself not to be a force for peace in the Middle East. Does Israel have a moral right in international law to hold on to it, well no. But has this stopped this state expanding into areas in direct breach of UN resolutions(for what practical good these are) The retention of the Golan Heights is not really going to fundamentally effect the Syrian people, whereas the latter has been effecting the Palestinian people for the last 50 years.

[Randarkmaan]

Which people?? those who were brought from who knows where and settled there few decades ago?? Or those who were living there for hundreds of years and were expelled few decades ago??

Actually quite a few of the people living there are Syrian Druzes...

[Taxandrius]

According to international law and universal mores: yes you should give back what is not rightfully yours. If Israel thinks it has the right to claim its "heimat", it's normal that the Syrians have the right to claim back their territory.

[Armija]

Actually quite a few of the people living there are Syrian Druzes...

Yes because they were forced out..
Before Golan heights got occupied there was no Jewish people there, they were illegaly imported afterward..
while of some 110.000 of Arabs living there prior to the war nearly 94% were expelled and forbidden from returning (war crime)..

[austin.weathers]

Actually quite a few of the people living there are Syrian Druzes...

And you DO NOT mess with the Druze.

[Poach]

Isreal, as I recall it, was willing to surrender it for peace but Syria refused to negociate.

To be honest, in an ideal world the people on the Heights should be allowed to vote for where they end up. Failing that, they're governed by Isreali law and the area is manned by Isreali soldiers, so for all intents and purposes the Heights are Isreali.

Syria retains the right to try and retake the Heights, ofcourse, but that won't happen.

[Armija]

Isreal, as I recall it, was willing to surrender it for peace but Syria refused to negociate.

To be honest, in an ideal world the people on the Heights should be allowed to vote for where they end up. Failing that, they're governed by Isreali law and the area is manned by Isreali soldiers, so for all intents and purposes the Heights are Isreali.

Syria retains the right to try and retake the Heights, ofcourse, but that won't happen.

Which people?? those who were brought from who knows where and settled there few decades ago?? Or those who were living there for hundreds of years and were expelled few decades ago??

Golan Heights are part of Syria and are inside it's recognized borders, Israel is occupator there..

[Gromovnik]

They shouldn't return it, it would only give terrorists a better tactical position for attacking Israel.

[removeduser_487563287433]

How so, Pannonius?

[Gromovnik]

How so, Pannonius?

Because it's location is perfect for doing so, and the syrian regime is known for it's support for terrorism.

[removeduser_487563287433]

Because it's location is perfect for doing so

How so?

[Gromovnik]

How so?

Because they dominate the neighbouring plains.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golan_Heights

[removeduser_487563287433]

Because they dominate the neighbouring plains.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golan_Heights

With what? Terrorist artillery?

[The Noble Lord]

Israel should return Golan Heights to Syria and Syria should guarantee Israel's security and territorial integrity. It should all be verified in a unique Israeli-Syrian peace and friendship treaty.

[Jom]

Moved to the VV.

[Armija]

i hear time and time again how it is against intl law for israel to annex the golan heights.
i want to hear your opinion on the following:
was it not against intl law for syria to attack israel in the first place?
i mean if an israeli tank shells an arab house thats a crime, so how come thousands of syrian tanks shelling israeli houses is not a crime?
if you agree that syria breached intl law by attacking israel, than should it not compensate israel?
maybe a valid argument would be that once syria ressurected all the israelis it has unlawfully killed than israel should return land it unlawfuly annexed? and that is without even speaking of compensation. its like you break my car and all i demand is a new car and not any kind of fine for you.
what do you think about this?

Point is that you ignore the facts.. in 1967 Israel attacked Syria and took Golan heights.
There was no emidiate Syrian attack preceding Israeli invasion of Syrian territory... Anyway occupation of foreign territory is illegal no mather what (attacking other country is illegal too) thus it must be returned..

Your example with car is not actually similar to what happened.. It would be more like: you brake my car then I enter your house beat you and your family and throw them out and say "this is my house now"..

[MaccabiFanatic]

Point is that you ignore the facts.. in 1967 Israel attacked Syria and took Golan heights.
There was no emidiate Syrian attack preceding Israeli invasion of Syrian territory... Anyway occupation of foreign territory is illegal no mather what (attacking other country is illegal too) thus it must be returned..

Your example with car is not actually similar to what happened.. It would be more like: you brake my car then I enter your house beat you and your family and throw them out and say "this is my house now"..

you forgot a small minor detail...syria was attacking israeli settlments killing innocent civilians...we were easy targets to them when they were up on the heights sniping and shooting mortars at the downhill cities...it is the same thing with hamas today shooting at sderot..but the difference is that syria was an independet country so that was an act of war..we had every right to stop them...

the golan heights should not be returned. we must learn from our mistakes..extremly importent stratigic point that can used against us and basicly put the entire country in danger.
secondly,syria is funded and supported by iran. they give them money and weapons. why would we give them the golan heights? it is like shooting our selfs in the heart.
they attacked us,we attacked them and took control over the heights with our best men. it is rightfuly ours.
by the way...the arabs living in the golan heights (syrians) were offerd israeli citizenship yet they refused. some of them of course...

typical arab behavior..you attack us,you try to kill and destroy us.
we fight you back and we win,we take control of the territory and then they cry to the UN and demend to have it back...come on boys..you should of thought about it in the first place when you tried to kill us all..thats what the arabs do all the time.