Now that Donald Trump has signaled the departure of U.S. troops from Syria–to the consternation of many who were urging him to do it in the first place, no surprise–it’s a perfect moment to ease some worries and do something overdue literally for decades: officially recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.
Given the behavior of Syria’s horrendous dictator Bashar Assad–gassing women and children while destroying nearly his entire nation to “save” it and creating a refugee crisis that is turning Europe into the ghost of itself, not to mention allying with the homicidal terrorist maniacs in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and Hezbollah and, of course, Russia–the Israelis would have to be completely insane to give up the Golan.
Not even a nuclear bomb on Tel Aviv would get them to leave so Syria can once again rain artillery over northern Israel as they did for decades. Everybody knows that, but few in this country or Europe want to say it out loud. Some claim that would endanger the so-called peace process that hasn’t moved in those same decades. Of course, the opposite is true. Only by an accurate and honest assessment of the situation could there ever be a peace process.
Meanwhile, the only people being decent to the Syrians are, ironically, the Israelis. For years now during their endless civil war IDF soldiers have been sneaking across the border to bring thousands of wounded Syrians to Israeli hospitals for treatment, then quietly returning them to their home country. Can you imagine the reverse? I can’t. (By the way, this is not a new story. The Israelis have been rescuing Arab citizens from the violence in their countries since, at least, the seventies. See the story of Brigitte Gabriel.)
At this moment, Senators Ted Cruz and Tom Cotton are making a move toward recognition in the Senate.
Two of the Senate’s most conservative members proposed a non-binding resolution on Tuesday encouraging US recognition of Israeli sovereignty in the Golan Heights as punishment for Bashar Assad in Syria.
According to a draft of the resolution, first obtained by Jewish Insider, a Washington-based newsletter, the move would “ensure that the Assad regime faces diplomatic and geopolitical consequences for the killing of civilians, the ethnic cleansing of Syrian Sunnis, and the use of weapons of mass destruction.”
Good on them. But it is only a “non-binding resolution.” Now is the time for Trump to act. He was able to move the embassy to Jerusalem. The predicted outbursts did not occur and other nations are beginning to follow suit.
The next logical step would be the recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the Golan. The moment is particularly propitious because of the Syria withdrawal. Friends of Israel are concerned for the safety of the one nation that is a reliable U.S. ally in the region (arguably the most reliable US ally anywhere).
The people most likely to scream at this action would be Democrats. A good many of them do so reflexively. If Trump were to announce a minimum basic income of a hundred thousand dollars with tuition-free education through age 68, they would insist it was too little because it was Trump’s idea.
These are the same people who scream “Russia! Russia! Russia!” until their eyes pop out. What might occur to these deranged partisan ideologues is that it is Russia that is most likely to suffer from a strong Israel on Syria’s border. At this point, Assad has probably long given up on the Golan, except for propaganda purposes. He undoubtedly thinks he’s lucky to be alive and he is.
An increasingly powerful Israel, high tech and well-armed, working closely with the U.S. military, as they now do, will keep Putin on his toes without putting American boys at risk.
Take the Golan off the table. Do it, Donald!
(And while you’re at it, move judiciously with the Syrian withdrawal or ISIS will be back before you know it. Also, think about doing something for the Kurds. They’re heroes. Furthermore, for those interested in analysis of the complexities of the Syrian withdrawal, Caroline Glick is mandatory reading. Among those who read it should be Chuck Schumer. Odds are that he won’t.)
Roger L. Simon – co-founder and CEO Emeritus of PJ Media – is an award-winning author and an Academy Award-nominated screenwriter.
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