The Golan Heights were part of Syria until 1967, when Israel captured most of the area in the Six Day War, occupying it and annexing it in 1981.
Born and raised in the nearby village of Majdal Shams, Fakheraldeen is one of the estimated 20,000 Syrians living in the 70 percent of the Golan Heights occupied by Israel during the 1967 war.
The Golan is a hilly, 1,200-square-kilometer (460-square-mile) plateau overlooking Lebanon, Syria and the Jordan Valley. The Golan is only 60 km (40 miles) from Damascus and provides Israel with a
Archaeologists in the Golan Heights, a 500-square-mile plateau claimed by both Israel and Syria, have found the ruins of the area’s oldest known fortified settlement.The Golan Heights has been a point of dispute between Syria and Israel for several decades and Syria and Israel claim their suzerainty. Golan Heights or Golan Hills have been important due to their strategic position. AFP. The US accepted Israeli hegemony over the Golan, saying that this region is very important for the security and sovereignty KLHkGG.