Exploiting the Occupied Golan Heights.

Syrian-American Organizations are outraged by recent reports that Israel has awarded the first energy exploration license in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights to a local subsidiary of the U.S. based Genie Energy Corp.

It is disgraceful that as tens of thousands of Syrians are slaughtered and many more injured, tortured, or imprisoned due to the brutal response of Bashar al-Assad’s regime to demands freedom, Israel would take this opportunity to steal from the Syrian people.

Israel has occupied the Golan Heights since 1967, and its annexation of the land in 1981 was unrecognized and condemned internationally. Plundering the oil/gas resources of the Golan Heights violates the 1949 Fourth Geneva Convention, which makes it clear that exploiting resources from occupied territory is prohibited.

This move by the Israeli government is the first time it has attempted to explore for oil/gas resources
in the Golan Heights, but it is not the first violation of international law when it comes to its actions in the territory. More than 20,000 Israeli settlers live in the Golan Heights illegally. In addition, Israeli settlements and companies have exploited the land’s water resources for decades, and many Israeli-labeled wines are from grapes harvested and in bottles made in illegal Golan Heights settlements.

The US, and other governments that provide military aid and diplomatic protection to Israel must condemn these ongoing violations of international law. Companies that profit exploiting Syrian resources must be held accountable through boycott and divestment efforts.