Uzbekistan supports UN resolution demanding Israel’s withdrawal from Syrian Golan Passes

On November 29, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution calling on Israel to withdraw from the occupied Golan Passes, the organization's press service reported.

91 countries voted in favor of the document, including Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, as well as Russia, Brazil, India, and China. Eight countries, including the US, UK, Israel, and Canada, opposed it. Another 62 countries abstained.

Co-authors of the resolution were Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, UAE, Syria and other countries.

The Assembly declared that Israel has failed so far to comply with Security Council resolution 497 (1981) and that its 1981 decision to impose its laws, jurisdiction, and administration on the occupied Syrian Golan is null and void with no validity. It demanded once more that Israel withdraw from all the occupied Syrian Golan to the line of 4 June 1967. It called on all concerned parties to resume the peace process and ensure its success by implementing relevant Security Council resolutions.

Speaking before the vote, the Syrian delegate said that for more than five decades, the General Assembly has called on Israel, the occupying Power, to end its occupation of the Syrian Golan. He reaffirmed Syria’s legitimate right to reclaim the occupied Syrian Golan, saying, “This is an established right that is not subject to compromise.”

The Golan Passes were part of Syria until 1967 before they were occupied by Israel during the Six-Day War. In 1981, the Israeli parliament passed a law that unilaterally declared the sovereignty of the Jewish state in the area. UN Security Council Resolution 497 of December 17, 1981, declared the annexation invalid.

During the 1973 Arab-Israeli war, Syria tried to retake the Golan Passes but was defeated. A neutral demilitarized zone was established between Israeli and Syrian forces, monitored by the UN.

Syria still considers the Golan Passes its territory, and their return is the most important condition for signing a peace treaty with Israel.