Published : 24-03-2019
Dozens of displaced Palestinian refugees took to the street in Deir Ballout Camp north of Syria, protesting the statements made by the U.S. President Donald Trump, in which he said that it is time for US to recognize Israel's Sovereignty over the Golan Heights.
Civilians displaced from the Golan Heights and taking shelter in the nearby AlMuhammadiya refugee camp also joined the protests.
Deir Ballout Camp has been set up next to the AFAD-founded AlMuhammadiya Camp. Both camps are home to 1,100 poorly-equipped tents sheltering hundreds of displaced families.
President Donald Trump on Thursday overturned longstanding US policy regarding the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, announcing "it is time" for the US to "fully recognize Israel's Sovereignty" over the region.
"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 tweeted.
The announcement hands Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a significant foreign policy victory, less than three weeks before Israelis head to the polls to decide whether he should remain in power. The move comes just days before Netanyahu is set to join Trump at the White House and follows weeks during which Netanyahu has renewed his push for the US to recognize the Golan Heights as part of Israel.
Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria during the Six-Day War of 1967 and formally annexed the territory in 1981. But that annexation has not been recognized by the international community, which has regarded the Golan Heights as occupied territory and Israeli settlements there as illegal under international law. The UN special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, recently reiterated that position.
"The Security Council is very clear that the Golan is Syrian territory, and the first aspect of (Resolution) 2254 is of course the territorial integrity of Syria," he said in a news briefing in late February.
Dozens of displaced Palestinian refugees took to the street in Deir Ballout Camp north of Syria, protesting the statements made by the U.S. President Donald Trump, in which he said that it is time for US to recognize Israel's Sovereignty over the Golan Heights.
Civilians displaced from the Golan Heights and taking shelter in the nearby AlMuhammadiya refugee camp also joined the protests.
Deir Ballout Camp has been set up next to the AFAD-founded AlMuhammadiya Camp. Both camps are home to 1,100 poorly-equipped tents sheltering hundreds of displaced families.
President Donald Trump on Thursday overturned longstanding US policy regarding the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, announcing "it is time" for the US to "fully recognize Israel's Sovereignty" over the region.
"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 tweeted.
The announcement hands Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a significant foreign policy victory, less than three weeks before Israelis head to the polls to decide whether he should remain in power. The move comes just days before Netanyahu is set to join Trump at the White House and follows weeks during which Netanyahu has renewed his push for the US to recognize the Golan Heights as part of Israel.
Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria during the Six-Day War of 1967 and formally annexed the territory in 1981. But that annexation has not been recognized by the international community, which has regarded the Golan Heights as occupied territory and Israeli settlements there as illegal under international law. The UN special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, recently reiterated that position.
"The Security Council is very clear that the Golan is Syrian territory, and the first aspect of (Resolution) 2254 is of course the territorial integrity of Syria," he said in a news briefing in late February.
