When President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday affirming Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights, there was an outcry that went far beyond the Arab world. The Golan Heights, which belonged to Syria, were part of Israel's conquests in the 1967 war. The only part it has annexed according to Israeli law, however, is the Golan Heights. What guarantees Israel's position in the Golan Heights is a crushing superiority in military force, and the same is true of most other occupied territories around the world. Mr Trump's recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights makes the simultaneous American campaign to reverse the Russian annexation of Crimea look hypocritical, but that campaign wasn't getting any traction anyway.

Source: Bangkok Post March 26, 2019 12:56 UTC