[Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs] Maj.-Gen. (res.) Giora Eiland - Israeli-Syrian negotiations in 1999-2000 discussed security arrangements to compensate Israel for the loss of the Golan Heights. The idea was to guarantee that in case of war, IDF forces could quickly return to the place where they are currently stationed. This analysis demonstrates that Israel does not possess a plausible solution to its security needs without the Golan Heights. Not only was the "solution" proposed in the year 2000 implausible at the time, but changing circumstances - made evident in the Second Lebanon War in 2006 - have rendered Israel's forfeiture of the Golan today inadvisable. These changes include the massive use of short-range rockets against Israel's home front, which could hinder the mobilization of IDF reserves; the massive use of anti-tank weaponry, which would slow the return of IDF forces to their previous defensive line; and the Syrian withdrawal from Lebanon, which removed the issue of the disarmament of Hizbullah from any Golan agreement.
2009-04-10 06:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive