Word: golan
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...negotiations stretch on, the key obstacle remains Syria's demand that Israel return the strategic Golan Heights captured in the 1967 war. Critics view the price as too high, and even those who support a peace accord are loath to relinquish the Golan. Who would feel safe in the U.S. capital if just across the Potomac River an enemy force occupied a 9,000-ft.-high plateau in northern Virginia...
...Many Israelis believe Syrian President Hafez Assad has observed a cold peace with Jerusalem because he hopes to get his territory back; give up the Golan, they argue, and Syria will lose any incentive to stay in line. Then, says Netanyahu, "nothing would keep Damascus from violating a treaty...
...Israelis argue that with Jordan and Egypt at peace with Israel, Jerusalem has the security it needs. A combined Arab force failed to vanquish Israel in four previous wars, they note; if the talks with Syria collapse, Damascus is unlikely to wage a one-on-one battle over the Golan. "So why deal on Assad's terms?" asks Netanyahu...
...agreement with Syria is ever reached, Rabin promises a national referendum to ratify it. His chances will improve immeasurably if the U.S. agrees to station troops on the Golan to monitor the deal. Clinton has indicated he would send them, but political realities dictate that Congress approve the deployment, and Helms is only one of many who say no. "Just like in Beirut, our forces would be an inviting target for extremists out to derail the peace even if Syria itself really favors it," says New York Senator Al D'Amato, whose views on the matter are respected by other...
...battle utilizing weapons of mass destruction would invariably provoke a punishing Israeli counterstrike, possibly with nuclear weapons, but Israel would suffer as never before. For that reason alone, peace with Syria is clearly in Israel's interest. If the cost involves stationing 1,000 U.S. troops in a demilitarized Golan -- which is the number the parties are talking about -- that is a small commitment for a large and unambiguously worthy goal...