From Syria to Turkey and beyond, President Donald Trump's abrupt declaration that Washington will recognize Israel's sovereignty over the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights drew strong condemnation on Friday.

The Syrian government called it "irresponsible" and a threat to international peace and stability, while Iran's foreign ministry said it plunges the region into a new crisis.

The Foreign Ministry in Damascus said Trump's statement confirms "the blind bias of the United States to the Zionist entity," referring to Israel, and added that it won't change "the fact that the Golan was and will remain Arab and Syrian."

The ministry also said Damascus is now more intent on liberating the Golan, "using every possible means."

Trump's announcement the day before was a major shift in American policy and gives Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a political boost a month before what is expected to be a close election.

The administration has been considering recognizing Israel's sovereignty over the strategic highlands, which Israel captured from Syria in 1967, for some time and Netanyahu had pressed the matter with visiting U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo this week.

Israel unilaterally annexed the Golan Heights in 1981. The U.N. Security Council resolution 497, issued after the annexation, refers to Israel as "the occupying power" and says Israel's attempt to "impose its laws, jurisdiction and administration in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights is null and void and without international legal effect."

Damascus also said Trump's statement "clearly shows the U.S. disdain to the international legitimacy and violates its resolutions, especially Security Council resolution 497" while also threatening "international peace and stability."

Syria's Foreign Ministry later announced that a letter was sent to the presidents of the U.N. Security Council and United Nations over Trump's "irresponsible and dangerous statements over the Golan." The statement urged the U.N. secretary-general to confirm the organization's stance regarding Israeli occupation of the Golan.

In a Friday tweet, Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif took aim at the U.S., saying that if it believes that "persistently violating int'l law, bullying sovereign nations & milking its clients projects strength. It does not. Its recklessness just displays panic of an empire in decline."

Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit also criticized the American stance, saying it "comes outside the international legitimacy and no country, no matter how important it is, can make such a decision."

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Trump's "unfortunate" declaration has brought the region "to the brink of a new crisis and new tensions."

"We will never allow the legitimization of the occupation of the Golan Heights," Erdogan added.

Egypt also issued a statement, saying the Golan is occupied Arab territory and calling for respect for international resolutions.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Trump's comments "can destabilize the already fragile situation in the Middle East."

"The very idea is not helping the goals of the Middle East settlement, quite the other way round," he said. "Right now, it's merely a declaration. Let's hope it will stay this way."

In Germany, government spokeswoman Ulrike Demmer said there was no change to Berlin's position on the Golan Heights, pointing to the 1981 U.N. resolution. She said Germany opposes "unilateral steps," but is well aware of the territory's significance to Israel.

"A peace settlement would have to take account of Israel's very justified security interests and of course stop once and for all the potential dangers to Israel from the Golan Heights," Demmer said. "But for the present, the tensions that already exist should not be deepened."

The U.S. will be the first country to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan, which the rest of the international community regards as territory occupied by Israel whose status should be determined by negotiations between Israel and Syria. Attempts to bring Israel and Syria to the table have failed.

It was not immediately clear how a U.N. peacekeeping force that is in place in the Golan might be affected by the U.S. move. That force's mandate expires at the end of June.

There had been signals that a U.S. decision was coming. Last week, in its annual human rights report, the State Department dropped the phrase "Israeli-occupied" from the Golan Heights section, instead calling it "Israeli-controlled."

Associated Press writers Maggie Michael in Cairo; Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Turkey; Nataliya Vasilyeva in Moscow, Amir Vahdat in Tehran, Iran; Geir Moulson in Berlin and Bassem Mroue in Beirut contributed to this report.</s>BEIRUT (Reuters) - The Syrian government vowed to recover the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on Friday as its allies and enemies alike condemned U.S. President Donald Trump for moving to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the territory seized in war.

Trump’s statement on Thursday marked a dramatic shift in U.S. policy over the status of a disputed area that Israel captured from Syria in the 1967 Middle East war and annexed in 1981 - a move not recognized internationally.

Russia and Iran, military allies of Damascus, condemned the shift towards recognition - comments which the Syrian government said showed Washington’s “blind” pro-Israeli bias.

“The Syrian nation is more determined to liberate this precious piece of Syrian national land through all available means,” the Syrian state news agency cited an official source as saying.

The Golan Heights would remain “Syrian, Arab”, it said, saying the statement showed contempt for international law.

Turkey, a U.S.-allied state and an adversary of the Damascus government, also criticized the move, saying it had brought the Middle East to the edge of a new crisis and the legitimisation of the occupation of the Golan Heights could not be allowed.

“U.S. President Trump’s unfortunate statement yesterday has brought the region to the brink of a new crisis,” Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said.

Iran said the U.S. position was illegal and unacceptable, and Russia said a change in the status of the Golan Heights would be a direct violation of U.N. resolutions.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who is touring the region, is due in Beirut on Friday where he will he will meet political allies of the powerful, Iran-backed Hezbollah, including President Michel Aoun.

Both Iran and Russia have deployed forces into Syria in support of President Bashar al-Assad during the Syrian conflict, with Iran sending both its own forces and also backing regional Shi’ite militias such as Lebanon’s Hezbollah that have helped Damascus.

“This illegal and unacceptable recognition does not change the fact that it belongs to Syria,” an Iranian foreign ministry spokesman was cited as saying by state TV.

In a speech at a meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, Turkey’s Erdogan said: “we cannot allow the legitimisation of the occupation of the Golan Heights”.

The Arab League, which suspended Syria in 2011, said Trump’s comment paved “the way for official American recognition” of Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.

Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit said the statements were “completely beyond international law”.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pressed the United States to recognize its claim and raised that possibility in his first White House meeting with Trump in February 2017. Trump’s statement has given a boost to Netanyahu in the middle of his re-election campaign.

Netanyahu has praised Trump for “making history” with the statement.

“After 52 years it is time for the United States to fully recognize Israel’s Sovereignty over the Golan Heights, which is of critical strategic and security importance to the State of Israel and Regional Stability!” Trump wrote on Twitter on Thursday.

Trump’s move followed the U.S. recognition in December 2017 of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital - a decision that also drew international criticism as the disputed city’s status remains at the heart of the Israel-Palestinian conflict.</s>(CNN) President Donald Trump on Thursday overturned longstanding US policy regarding the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, announcing "it is time" for the US to "fully recognize Israel's Sovereignty" over the region.

"After 52 years it is time for the United States to fully recognize Israel's Sovereignty over the Golan Heights, which is of critical strategic and security importance to the State of Israel and Regional Stability," Trump tweeted.

The announcement hands Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a significant foreign policy victory, less than three weeks before Israelis head to the polls to decide whether he should remain in power. The move comes just days before Netanyahu is set to join Trump at the White House and follows weeks during which Netanyahu has renewed his push for the US to recognize the Golan Heights as part of Israel.

Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria during the Six-Day War of 1967 and formally annexed the territory in 1981. But that annexation has not been recognized by the international community, which has regarded the Golan Heights as occupied territory and Israeli settlements there as illegal under international law. The UN special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, recently reiterated that position.

"The Security Council is very clear that the Golan is Syrian territory, and the first aspect of (Resolution) 2254 is of course the territorial integrity of Syria," he said in a news briefing in late February.

Read More</s>DAMASCUS, Syria — From Syria to Turkey and beyond, President Donald Trump's abrupt declaration that Washington will recognize Israel's sovereignty over the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights drew strong condemnation on Friday.

The Syrian government called it "irresponsible" and a threat to international peace and stability, while Iran's foreign ministry said it plunges the region into a new crisis.

The Foreign Ministry in Damascus said Trump's statement confirms "the blind bias of the United States to the Zionist entity," referring to Israel, and added that it won't change "the fact that the Golan was and will remain Arab and Syrian."

The ministry also said Damascus is now more intent on liberating the Golan, "using every possible means."

Trump's announcement the day before was a major shift in American policy and gives Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a political boost a month before what is expected to be a close election.

The administration has been considering recognizing Israel's sovereignty over the strategic highlands, which Israel captured from Syria in 1967, for some time and Netanyahu had pressed the matter with visiting U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo this week.

Israel unilaterally annexed the Golan Heights in 1981. The U.N. Security Council resolution 497, issued after the annexation, refers to Israel as "the occupying power" and says Israel's attempt to "impose its laws, jurisdiction and administration in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights is null and void and without international legal effect."

Damascus also said Trump's statement "clearly shows the U.S. disdain to the international legitimacy and violates its resolutions, especially Security Council resolution 497" while also threatening "international peace and stability."

Syria's Foreign Ministry later announced that a letter was sent to the presidents of the U.N. Security Council and United Nations over Trump's "irresponsible and dangerous statements over the Golan." The statement urged the U.N. secretary-general to confirm the organization's stance regarding Israeli occupation of the Golan.

In a Friday tweet, Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif took aim at the U.S., saying that if it believes that "persistently violating int'l law, bullying sovereign nations & milking its clients projects strength. It does not. Its recklessness just displays panic of an empire in decline."

Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit also criticized the American stance, saying it "comes outside the international legitimacy and no country, no matter how important it is, can make such a decision."

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Trump's "unfortunate" declaration has brought the region "to the brink of a new crisis and new tensions."

"We will never allow the legitimization of the occupation of the Golan Heights," Erdogan added.

Egypt also issued a statement, saying the Golan is occupied Arab territory and calling for respect for international resolutions.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Trump's comments "can destabilize the already fragile situation in the Middle East."

"The very idea is not helping the goals of the Middle East settlement, quite the other way round," he said. "Right now, it's merely a declaration. Let's hope it will stay this way."

In Germany, government spokeswoman Ulrike Demmer said there was no change to Berlin's position on the Golan Heights, pointing to the 1981 U.N. resolution. She said Germany opposes "unilateral steps," but is well aware of the territory's significance to Israel.

"A peace settlement would have to take account of Israel's very justified security interests and of course stop once and for all the potential dangers to Israel from the Golan Heights," Demmer said. "But for the present, the tensions that already exist should not be deepened."

The U.S. will be the first country to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan, which the rest of the international community regards as territory occupied by Israel whose status should be determined by negotiations between Israel and Syria. Attempts to bring Israel and Syria to the table have failed.

It was not immediately clear how a U.N. peacekeeping force that is in place in the Golan might be affected by the U.S. move. That force's mandate expires at the end of June.

There had been signals that a U.S. decision was coming. Last week, in its annual human rights report, the State Department dropped the phrase "Israeli-occupied" from the Golan Heights section, instead calling it "Israeli-controlled."

Associated Press writers Maggie Michael in Cairo; Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Turkey; Nataliya Vasilyeva in Moscow, Amir Vahdat in Tehran, Iran; Geir Moulson in Berlin and Bassem Mroue in Beirut contributed to this report.</s>From Syria to Turkey and beyond, President Donald Trump’s abrupt declaration that Washington will recognize Israel’s sovereignty over the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights drew strong condemnation on Friday.

The Syrian government called it “irresponsible” and a threat to international peace and stability, while Iran’s foreign ministry said it plunges the region into a new crisis.

The Foreign Ministry in Damascus said Trump’s statement confirms “the blind bias of the United States to the Zionist entity,” referring to Israel, and added that it won’t change “the fact that the Golan was and will remain Arab and Syrian.”

The ministry also said Damascus is now more intent on liberating the Golan, “using every possible means.”

Trump’s announcement the day before was a major shift in American policy and gives Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a political boost a month before what is expected to be a close election.

The administration has been considering recognizing Israel’s sovereignty over the strategic highlands, which Israel captured from Syria in 1967, for some time and Netanyahu had pressed the matter with visiting U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo this week.

Israel unilaterally annexed the Golan Heights in 1981. The U.N. Security Council resolution 497, issued after the annexation, refers to Israel as “the occupying power” and says Israel’s attempt to “impose its laws, jurisdiction and administration in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights is null and void and without international legal effect.”

Damascus also said Trump’s statement “clearly shows the U.S. disdain to the international legitimacy and violates its resolutions, especially Security Council resolution 497” while also threatening “international peace and stability.”

Syria’s Foreign Ministry later announced that a letter was sent to the presidents of the U.N. Security Council and United Nations over Trump’s “irresponsible and dangerous statements over the Golan.” The statement urged the U.N. secretary-general to confirm the organization’s stance regarding Israeli occupation of the Golan.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi said Trump’s “personal and arbitrary decisions” plunge the region into a new crisis, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported.

Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit also criticized the American stance, saying it “comes outside the international legitimacy and no country, no matter how important it is, can make such a decision.”

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Trump’s “unfortunate” declaration has brought the region “to the brink of a new crisis and new tensions.”

“We will never allow the legitimization of the occupation of the Golan Heights,” Erdogan added.

Egypt also issued a statement, saying the Golan is occupied Arab territory and calling for respect for international resolutions.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Trump’s comments “can destabilize the already fragile situation in the Middle East.”

“The very idea is not helping the goals of the Middle East settlement, quite the other way round,” he said. “Right now, it’s merely a declaration. Let’s hope it will stay this way.”

In Germany, government spokeswoman Ulrike Demmer said there was no change to Berlin’s position on the Golan Heights, pointing to the 1981 U.N. resolution. She said Germany opposes “unilateral steps,” but is well aware of the territory’s significance to Israel.

“A peace settlement would have to take account of Israel’s very justified security interests and of course stop once and for all the potential dangers to Israel from the Golan Heights,” Demmer said. “But for the present, the tensions that already exist should not be deepened.”

The U.S. will be the first country to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan, which the rest of the international community regards as territory occupied by Israel whose status should be determined by negotiations between Israel and Syria. Attempts to bring Israel and Syria to the table have failed.

It was not immediately clear how a U.N. peacekeeping force that is in place in the Golan might be affected by the U.S. move. That force’s mandate expires at the end of June.

There had been signals that a U.S. decision was coming. Last week, in its annual human rights report, the State Department dropped the phrase “Israeli-occupied” from the Golan Heights section, instead calling it “Israeli-controlled.”

Associated Press writers Maggie Michael in Cairo; Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Turkey; Nataliya Vasilyeva in Moscow, Amir Vahdat in Tehran, Iran; Geir Moulson in Berlin and Bassem Mroue in Beirut contributed to this report.</s>The Syrian government on Friday condemned US President Donald Trump's pledge to recognise Israel's annexation of the Golan Heights, saying it flies in the face of international law.

Trump on Thursday called the Golan -- a strategic area seized from Syria in 1967 and annexed in a move never recognised by the international community -- "of critical strategic and security importance to the State of Israel and Regional Stability!"

The Syrian government denounced his comments, saying they flagrantly disregarded international law.

"The American position towards Syria's occupied Golan Heights clearly reflects the United States' contempt for international legitimacy and its flagrant violation of international law," a foreign ministry source told the official SANA news agency.

The source said Trump's comments showed the extent of his administration's bias towards Israel.

They "once again confirmed the United State's blind bias in favour of the Zionist occupation forces and its unlimited support for their aggressive actions."

The source accused the US of stoking tensions and threatening international stability, and urged members of the international community to stand against such positions and act in accordance with international law.

"The statements of the US president and his administration on the occupied Syrian Golan will never change the fact that the Golan was and will remain Arab and Syrian," the source said.

Trump's comments recognising Israel's annexation are "completely outside international law", League secretary general Ahmed Aboul Gheit said on Monday evening.

"It is a recognition that, if applied, creates no rights, carries no obligations and lacks any legal value."

Following a long period of calm along the armistice line on the Golan since the Arab-Israeli conflict of 1973, tensions flared after civil war broke out in Syria in 2011.

Israel provided medical assistance to wounded rebel fighters and repeatedly struck government positions in response to stray fire across the ceasefire line.

It also launched a bombing campaign against suspected positions of Iran and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah, which have both intervened militarily in support of President Bashar al-Assad.

An Iranian general was among the dead in a January 2015 strike across the armistice line.

Since the Syrian government decisively defeated rebel fighters near the armistice line on the Golan Heights last year with Iranian and Hezbollah support, Israel has vowed repeatedly to prevent its arch enemies from establishing a long-term military presence.

Trump's recognition announcement was swiftly welcomed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who faces a tough reelection battle next month and visits Washington next week.

"At a time when Iran seeks to use Syria as a platform to destroy Israel, President Trump boldly recognises Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights," the right-wing prime minister wrote on Twitter. "Thank you President Trump!"

Trump handed a previous major concession to Israel in 2017 when he recognised Jerusalem as its capital and moved the US embassy to the disputed city despite angry Palestinian opposition.</s>The Syrian government on Friday condemned US President Donald Trump's pledge to recognise Israel's annexation of the Golan Heights, saying it flies in the face of international law.

Trump on Thursday called the Golan -- a strategic area seized from Syria in 1967 and annexed in a move never recognised by the international community -- "of critical strategic and security importance to the State of Israel and Regional Stability!"

The Syrian government denounced his comments, saying they flagrantly disregarded international law.

"The American position towards Syria's occupied Golan Heights clearly reflects the United States' contempt for international legitimacy and its flagrant violation of international law," a foreign ministry source told the official SANA news agency.

The source said Trump's comments showed the extent of his administration's bias towards Israel.

They "once again confirmed the United State's blind bias in favour of the Zionist occupation forces and its unlimited support for their aggressive actions."

The source accused the US of stoking tensions and threatening international stability, and urged members of the international community to stand against such positions and act in accordance with international law.

"The statements of the US president and his administration on the occupied Syrian Golan will never change the fact that the Golan was and will remain Arab and Syrian," the source said.

Trump's comments recognising Israel's annexation are "completely outside international law", League secretary general Ahmed Aboul Gheit said on Monday evening.

"It is a recognition that, if applied, creates no rights, carries no obligations and lacks any legal value."

Following a long period of calm along the armistice line on the Golan since the Arab-Israeli conflict of 1973, tensions flared after civil war broke out in Syria in 2011.

Israel provided medical assistance to wounded rebel fighters and repeatedly struck government positions in response to stray fire across the ceasefire line.

It also launched a bombing campaign against suspected positions of Iran and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah, which have both intervened militarily in support of President Bashar al-Assad.

An Iranian general was among the dead in a January 2015 strike across the armistice line.

Since the Syrian government decisively defeated rebel fighters near the armistice line on the Golan Heights last year with Iranian and Hezbollah support, Israel has vowed repeatedly to prevent its arch enemies from establishing a long-term military presence.

Trump's recognition announcement was swiftly welcomed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who faces a tough reelection battle next month and visits Washington next week.

"At a time when Iran seeks to use Syria as a platform to destroy Israel, President Trump boldly recognises Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights," the right-wing prime minister wrote on Twitter. "Thank you President Trump!"

Trump handed a previous major concession to Israel in 2017 when he recognised Jerusalem as its capital and moved the US embassy to the disputed city despite angry Palestinian opposition.</s>President Donald Trump on March 21 declared that the United States recognizes Israel’s claim to the Golan Heights.

“After 52 years it is time for the United States to fully recognize Israel’s Sovereignty over the Golan Heights, which is of critical strategic and security importance to the State of Israel and Regional Stability,” Trump tweeted.

Turkey, Iran, and Syria have condemned Trump’s statement on the Golan Heights.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took to Twitter to thank Trump, tweeting: “At a time when Iran seeks to use Syria as a platform to destroy Israel, President Trump boldly recognizes Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights. Thank you President Trump! @realDonaldTrump.”

Israel captured the 1,800-square-kilometer Golan Heights from Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War.

In 1981, Israel extended its laws to the region, effectively annexing it, in a move that has not been recognized by the international community.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on March 22 that Trump’s move has brought the region to the edge of a new crisis. “We cannot allow the legitimization of the occupation of the Golan Heights,” Erdogan told a meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.

Syria’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement carried by state news agency SANA that Damascus “condemns in the strongest terms the irresponsible statements of [Trump] regarding the occupied Syrian Golan.”

Trump’s remark “affirms the blind bias of the United States to the Zionist occupation entity and its unlimited support for aggressive behavior,” SANA added.

In an interview with Fox Business’ Maria Bartiromo, the president said that he had been thinking about Israel’s sovereignty in the Golan Heights for “a long time.”

“It’s been a very hard decision for every president. No president has done it. This is very much like Jerusalem, moving the embassy to Jerusalem,” said Trump in the interview.

“Everybody campaigned on Jerusalem and the embassy going to Jerusalem. They all campaigned on it and they never did it and I understand why. I also campaigned on it and when I got elected, I was inundated with calls from all over the world – mostly the leaders – saying ‘don’t do it, don’t do it’. I did it and it’s been done and it’s fine,” continued Trump.

“The Golan Heights is the same thing. For years, other presidents have campaigned, they said they’d do it. This is sovereignty, this is security, this is about regional security,” he pointed out.

Asked whether the move had anything to do with Netanyahu’s re-election bid, Trump replied, “I wouldn’t even know about that. I have no idea. I hear he’s doing okay. But I would imagine the other side – whoever’s against him – is also in favor of what I just did.”

“Every president said ‘do that’. I’m the one who gets it done,” Trump said.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, appearing alongside Netanyahu in Jerusalem on March 21, hailed Trump’s move as “historic” and “bold.”

“Tonight, President Trump made the decision to recognize that that hard-fought real estate, that important place, is proper to be a sovereign part of the state of Israel. President Trump made a bold decision to recognize that, an important decision for the people of Israel. It will truly be historic, and the people of Israel should know that the battles they fought, the lives that they lost on that very ground, were worthy and meaningful and important for all time,” Pompeo said.

Iran, one of Syrian President Bashar Assad’s main military backers, condemned Trump’s remarks as dangerous.

“Trump’s personal and ill-considered decision is dangerous and will only lead to further crises in the Middle East,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi said.

Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit declared that the League fully supports Syrian sovereignty over the Golan Heights.

“The League of Arab States fully supports Syria’s right for its occupied territory. We have a specific position, based on resolutions, on this issue,” Aboul Gheit said, according to the Sputnik news agency.

The Kremlin voiced hope that Trump’s statement would not be enacted. “It is just a call for now. Let’s hope it will remain a call,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Your Intel Brief: Geostrategy-Direct __________ Fix The Media Now

Login To Your FaceBook to Make Comments</s>Trump Says U.S. Will Recognize Israeli Sovereignty Over The Golan Heights

President Trump has tweeted that the U.S. will recognize Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights.</s>Trump says it is time for US to 'fully recognize Israel's Sovereignty' over disputed Golan Heights

WASHINGTON (AP) — Trump says it is time for US to 'fully recognize Israel's Sovereignty' over disputed Golan Heights .
U.S. President Donald Trump announces his intentions to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the disputed Golan Heights, a move welcomed by Israel.