The Israeli government on Sunday announced a $317 million plan to double the number of settlers living in the Golan Heights, which was annexed from Syria following Israel’s victory in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.
“Our goal today is to double the population of the Golan Heights. The Golan Heights, the need to strengthen, cultivate and live in it, is certainly a principle that unites everyone,” Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said during a cabinet meeting on Sunday. The plan will be implemented within five years and claims that it will improve the quality of life of residents and the local economy.
Israeli Government approves 1 Billion Shekel plan to develop the Golan Heights.
— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) December 26, 2021
PM Bennett: “Our goal is to double the population of the Golan Heights”.
Further information >>https://t.co/YBi8nSPeFM pic.twitter.com/zDShsfXR8g
The plan focuses on joint cooperation between the housing, interior, transportation, tourism, economy, agriculture, education, and environment ministries. It aims to add 7,300 housing units and populate the area with an additional 23,000 residents over the next five years. The plan also focuses on increasing investment potential to improve transport links and build educational, medical, and security infrastructure.
Israel has been in control of the Golan Heights for more than 40 years since it captured the region in the aftermath of the third Arab-Israeli war of June 1967. Following the six-day war, Israel captured the Sinai Peninsula and the Gaza Strip from Egypt, the West Bank and East Jerusalem from Jordan, and the Syrian Golan Heights. In 1981, Israel passed the Golan Heights Law, formally bringing it under the jurisdiction of Israel.
The international community has refused to recognise Israeli sovereignty over the Heights and officially calls it “annexed” and “occupied” land. However, in 2019, the United States (US) under President Donald Trump recognised the Golan Heights as a part of Israel and the Biden administration has said that it does not plan to change that decision.
In this respect, Bennett said that the Golan Heights belongs to Israel and called it “self-evident.” He added that since Israeli law has been applied to the region since 1981, Israel’s sovereignty of the Heights is “beyond all debate.”
“After around ten years of terrible civil war in Syria, every knowledgeable person in the world understands that it is preferable to have Israeli heights that are quiet, flourishing, and green as opposed to the alternative,” he said.
Furthermore, Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid called the cabinet’s decision “unprecedented” and said that doubling the settlement would “strengthen” the region. Israel views the Golan Heights as a strategic buffer against attacks from Syria, especially relating to attacks from Iran-backed militias.