A Remarkably Peaceful View of Syria

The Golan Heights is a fascinating region of Israel. Called the Golan for short, this small but strategic area situated on the northeast edge of the country shares borders with both Syria and Lebanon. The Golan was, in fact, formerly a part of Syria. Israel captured most of the area from Syria, though, on the last day of the Six-Day War in June 1967. It then officially annexed it in 1981. The international community did not agree with this annexation. As such, the Golan is a disputed territory to this day. Except for Israel and the United States, the rest of the world does not recognize the Golan Heights to be a part of Israel and believes it still belongs to Syria.

However, the reality is that the Golan Heights is a part of Israel. You can enter and exit the Golan from Israel without any military checkpoints or any other types of barriers. You can not enter the Golan Heights from Syria. Many Jewish people have moved to the Golan in recent decades. Today approximately 25,000 Jews live there, along with a roughly equal number of Arabs. Most of the Arabs in the Golan lived in there when it was still unquestionably a part of Syria.

If you don’t know the Golan’s history and politics when you travel there, you wouldn’t have any idea that this is a disputed territory. It is peaceful, green and spacious, filled with abundant nature and historical sights. One of my favorite spots in the Golan is Mount Bental. This mountain in the middle of the Golan near Israel’s eastern border offers beautiful sweeping views of Israel as well as Syria.

I took this photo several years ago when I went up to Mount Bental with my friend Yariv. I’m not sure where in this photo Israel ends and Syria begins. It is all so beautiful, though. What I like about this photo is the patchwork of trees surrounding farmland. I also like sense of connection the photo holds, illustrating that two adversarial countries can look so peaceful standing side by side.