Simon Wiesenthal Center: Now Is The Time For President Trump To Recognize Israel’s Sovereignty Over Golan Heights

December 20, 2018

“Failure to do so will only further embolden and empower Iran and its terrorist proxies,” Center says

“The Simon Wiesenthal Center is disappointed and concerned over the quick decision by President Trump to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria. We are especially worried that this move could be misconstrued by America’s enemies,” said Rabbi Marvin Hier, Founder & Dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center and Rabbi Abraham Cooper, Associate Dean, and Director of Global Social Action.

“We therefore call upon President Trump to immediately recognize Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights,” Center officials continued. “This would send an unmistakable signal to Israel’s enemies in Tehran and Damascus that the U.S. continues to stand with its ally Israel and will continue its leading and robust role in combating global terrorism,” they added.

“In the course of the Syrian Civil War, Israel’s control of the Golan Heights enabled the Jewish state to protect its citizens from terrorists operating in the region, was able to treat thousands of injured Syrians, and in a pivotal moment in the War, was able to save over 8,000 Syrian human rights monitors who would have been slaughtered by the Assad regime,” added Rabbis Hier and Cooper.

“Make no mistake, today the Golan Heights is the only buffer between Iranian-backed terrorists and the Kingdom of Jordan, Israel’s Northern communities, and the entire Middle East,”Wiesenthal Center officials said. “Failure to take this action-given the announced withdrawal of US troops from Syria- will further embolden and empower Iran and its terrorist proxies,” the officials concluded.

For more information, please contact the Center's Communications Department, 310-553-9036. Join the Center on Facebook, www.facebook.com/simonwiesenthalcenter, or follow @simonwiesenthal for news updates sent direct to your Twitter feed.

The Simon Wiesenthal Center is one of the largest international Jewish human rights organizations with over 400,000 member families in the United States. It is an NGO at international agencies including the United Nations, UNESCO, the OSCE, the OAS, the Council of Europe and the Latin American Parliament (Parlatino).

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