JTMUN 2019

The Special Political and Decolonization Committee

Letter from the Secretary-General

Dear Delegates,It is my great pleasure to welcome you to the fifth session

Lahore Grammar School Johar town Model United Nations, to be held from Thursday, October 10 to

Sunday, October 13.JTMUN is one of the toughest and most prestigious

conferences in Pakistan, hosting over 500 delegates each year. JTMUN is much more than just four days

of debate. It is a coterie, uniting delegates from over 10 cities in Pakistan to solve some of the world’s most daunting problems. You will be guided and

moderated at this conference by some of the best Directors in Lahore, all of whom are deeply

impassioned about the educational power and significance of MUN.

In our fifth year, we are immensely honoured to continue JTMUN’s proprietary focus on diplomacy,

collaboration and social change. We pride ourselves on providing you the most thorough delegate

experience possible, ranging from our extensive study guides to individualized feedback.

On behalf of the JTMUN secretariat, I invite you to join us in Lahore for JTMUN 2019.

Yours,Wasay Yar Khan

IntroductionAlthough pushed into the background by the horrors of the Syrian Civil War, the Golan dispute remains one of the most bitter in the region, a major barrier to lasting peace in the Middle East. Resolving the Golan would eliminate a major hurdle to regional cooperation, including cooperation on issues of mutual interests for Israel and Syria, such as counter- terrorism and natural resources sharing. It also remains a vital issue of principle for the Syrian Government and its many supporters in the United

Nations. Solving the Golan dispute would be a major achievement, but it may not be possible. It’s a piece of high ground in one of the most conflict-prone places on Earth. That’s made the Golan Heights a focus of global dispute ever since Israel seized it from Syria in the six-day 1967 Middle East War. Until now, the U.S., like the rest of the world, has refrained from accepting Israel’s claim to sovereignty over the strategically important territory. Now, U.S. President Donald Trump has tweeted “it is time” to extend that recognition.

BackgroundIsrael currently occupies about two-thirds of the Golan Heights, originally part of Syria, which it conquered in the Six Day War of 1967. Annexing territory through war is no longer accepted as part of international law. Return of the Golan has been a long standing demand of Syria, an essential part of any framework for Middle East peace. Syria has the long-standing support for the UN Member States of the Arab Bloc and the much larger 120 Member State Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), which regards Israeli’s annexation of the Golan as an act of colonialism. Syria and its supporters have repeatedly insisted that Middle East Peace is impossible without resolving the Golan issue.The occupation of Arab regions, and their subsequent unilateral annexation by Israel in 1981, is seen by Syria and its supporters as an attack on their sovereignty and the principle of territorial integrity. Although Syria is deeply divided since the start of civil war in 2011, this is one issue ally Syrians agree on. Several rebel groups have occupied the Syrian side of the Golan, using the land as a base to attack both Syria’s government of Assad and Israeli military positions and settlements in the Golan.The issue is tricky for other countries as well. Most—even governments normally supportive of Israel—do not wish to accept Israel’s annexation of lands that were not historically part of

Israel. Shortly after annexation Israel began settling the region, which now is home to many farming communities and light industry. Two generations of Israeli’s have grown up knowing the region as home. Meanwhile, generations of Syrian refugees continue to demand the return of the land their families owned in the Golan, for which they have not been compensated.Israeli leaders have previously suggested their willingness to consider returning the Golan to Syria, in a land-for-peace deal.After the failure of land-for-peace deals in Lebanon (2000) and Gaza (2005), which only seemed to empower anti-Israeli activists, there is little support for further deal in Israel. Instead, Israeli leaders stress the strategic importance of the Golan as a buffer against invasion from the country’s northeast, much as was in the 1973 war with Syria.

The Syrian Golan, or Golan Heights, is a region of the Levant straddling four borders. It sits between Lebanon and Israel to the North and Northwest, and Syria and Jordan to the East and South. A rocky plateau, it has only marginal agricultural value and no important natural resources. For Syria, its value is as part of the country’s historic territory. For Israel it is a strategic buffer against attack. The high mountains of the Golan—currently tourist attractions including Israeli’s best-known ski resort on Mount Hermon—allow for easier monitoring of military activity by the side that controls it.Water, however, is the most valuable commodity to control in the region. After occupying the Golan Heights in 1967, Israel promptly gained full control of the Sea of Galilee (also known as Kinneret or Lake Tiberias) just at the foot of the Golan, and its subsequent runoff into the River Jordan. The occupied Golan provides Israel with a third of all of its fresh water.

The Six-Day War was a brief but bloody conflict fought in June 1967 between Israel and the Arab states of Egypt, Syria and Jordan. Following years of diplomatic friction and skirmishes between Israel and its neighbors, Israel Defense Forces launched preemptive air strikes that crippled the air forces of Egypt and its allies. Israel then staged a successful ground offensive and seized the Sinai Peninsula and the Gaza Strip from Egypt, the West Bank and East Jerusalem from Jordan, and the Golan Heights from Syria. The brief war ended with a U.N.-brokered ceasefire, but it significantly altered the map of the Mideast and gave rise to lingering geopolitical friction.The last phase of the fighting took place along Israel’s northeastern border with Syria. On June 9, following an intense aerial bombardment, Israeli tanks and infantry advanced on a heavily fortified region of Syria called the Golan Heights. They successfully captured the Golan the next day.On June 10, 1967, a United Nations-brokered ceasefire took effect and the Six-Day War came to an abrupt end. It was later estimated that some 20,000 Arabs and 800 Israelis had died in just 132 hours of fighting.The leaders of the Arab states were left shocked by the severity of their defeat. Egyptian President Nasser even resigned in disgrace, only to promptly return to office after Egyptian citizens showed their support with massive street demonstrations.In Israel, the national mood was jubilant. In less than a week, the young nation had captured the Sinai Peninsula and the Gaza Strip from Egypt, the West Bank and East Jerusalem from Jordan, and the Golan Heights from Syria.The Six-Day War also marked the start of a new phase in the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, since the conflict created hundreds of thousands of refugees and brought more than one million Palestinians in the occupied territories under Israeli rule.

Six-Day War, also called June War or Third Arab-Israeli War, brief war that took place June 5–10, 1967, and was the third of the Arab-Israeli wars. Israel’s decisive victory included the capture of the Sinai Peninsula, Gaza Strip, West Bank, Old City of Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights; the status of these territories subsequently became a major point of contention in the Arab-Israeli conflict.

Timeline 1967 June - Israel captures Golan Heights during Six-Day War.

1973 October - Yom Kippur War: Syrian army fails to regain Golan Heights.

1974: Israel, Syria sign armistice.

1981: Israel annexes Golan Heights.

1999: Peace talks - Israeli premier and Syrian foreign minister meet.

2000 January - Peace talks break down.

2008 January - Indirect talks resume through Turkish intermediaries.

2008 September - Talks put on hold following resignation of Israeli PM.

2009 June - Syrian leader says no partner for talks on Israeli side.

2013 Syrian civil war impinges on Golan. Israel returns fire against Syrian rebels, and in May against the Syrian army, across no-man's land.2019 US President Donald Trump recognizes Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.

R o l e o f t h e UN The UN has maintained a ceasefire line since the armistice ending the Yom Kippur War of 1973. The United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) and United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) have maintained this peacekeeping mission for over three decades, with an extension agreed as recently as August 2016. UNDOF has no mandate for military action, and only 927 personnel, civilian and military.Outbreak of civil war in Syria in 2011 limited the effectiveness of UNDOF as the ceasefire line became increasingly unsafe for the Peacekeepers. When anti-Assad rebels fired Upon the Golan in 2013, Israel responded and distanced fighting between the opposing factions garnered the attention of the Syrian Armed Forces. The ceasefire line has been violated by both the Syrian Armed Forces and rebels on multiple occasions since the original conflict, causing a strain on the UN’s efforts of upholding peace and international law.The UN is not an impartial observer. Rather its policies are the resolutions agreed by its 193 sovereign Member States. The UN also has the ability to offer it’s ‘good offices’ or a safe negotiating environment and encouragement for peaceful settlement of disputes. If the parties to a dispute are both willing, Under Chapter Six of

The UN Charter, the UN can provide peacekeeping forces to help monitor and strengthen confidence in a Settlement. Under Chapter Seven of the UN Charter, the UN also can authorize peace enforcement operations for collective security including military support.For a Member State victimized through the unlawful annexation of its historic territory.In the past, the UN supported the goal of ‘Land for Peace’, whereby Israel would gain assurances of security, possibly including peacekeeping deployments by the UN, in exchange for returning control of the Golan to Syria. This changed with the election of Binyamin Netanyahu as Prime Minister of Israel, who has adopted the visage of an Immovable object in regards to the concession of any occupied territories. The issue before his election was down to how much land would be given up, and is a topic on which the UN could host discussion. Syria wanted more land than Israel was willing to concede, as the government did not want to lose control of the Sea ofGalilee. Israel has time and again proved to refuse adherence to UN suggestions, especially if there is nothing to gain from it. In this endeavor, there will be very little to tempt Israel with in terms of gains.

Secondly, the UN can serve as a court of international law to deal with the human rights violations and disengagement violations committed in the Syrian Golan. Israel could be held to be at fault for human rights abuses, such as forcing citizenship and rule in a territory over which it is not sovereign. For the Government of Syria, led by Bashar al-Assad, blame could apply to moving heavy weaponry into theDisengagement zone and violating the ceasefire that has been upheld for nearly fifty years.Also to be considered are the rebel groups fighting against the al-Assad government, especially the Free Syrian Army and ISIL, who have also violated the ceasefire and made it

increasingly dangerous for the continued operation of UNDOF, United Nations Disengagement Observer Force.

QARMA(Questions a resolution must answer)

Why the previous resolution A/RES/73/100 was unsuccessful?

What kind and type of framework shall the committee present to appease or even to solve this persisting conflict?

How is the committee wiling to move in order to help those that have been effected?

What guarantee does the committee have that involved state actors shall comply with the new resolution-if there is one?

Considering the interests of both nations, how shall the committee find a solution that shall both satisfy the concerned actors and circumvent violence?

The International CommunityCountries around the world, including Russia and U.S. allies such as France, Germany and Egypt, criticized President Trump's announcement this week that the U.S. would recognize Israeli sovereignty in the Golan Heights.Why it matters: At the moment, no country — other than Israel — has backed Trump's announcement. And most countries who came out against Trump's move stressed that it was a violation of international law and multiple UN resolutions.What they're saying:

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Trump's announcement "may considerably destabilize the already strained situation in the Middle East." He added that Russia

is still waiting to see if Trump will follow his tweet with any concrete steps.

France's Foreign Affairs Ministry said: "The Golan is a territory occupied by Israel since 1967. France does not recognize the Israeli annexation of 1981. UN Security Council resolutions had recognized the annexation as illegal."

Lebanese President Michel Aoun also opposed the Trump's decision, calling it a "black day" for the Arab world.

"The Golan Heights, one of the ancient Turkmen regions in Syria, has been under Israeli occupation for 52 years. Today, these lands are sought to be usurped in violation of international law," it said in a statement.

The STA warned that "such impositions would further incite the existing conflicts" in the region.

Following the Lebanese president's remarks, the Kremlin said that President Vladimir Putin will discuss the Golan Heights with Aoun. Russia, on Monday, also said that its stance on the Golan Heights remains unchanged.

"We did not recognize Israel's annexation in 1981 and have no plans to change our position," the U.K.'s Foreign Office said.

Germany's Federal Foreign Office said: "The Golan Heights is a Syrian territory occupied by Israel. National borders should be changed only through peaceful means between all those involved. The government rejects unilateral steps."

European Council President Donald Tusk said the EU was maintaining its position on the Golan Heights despite Trump's announcement: "The European Union does not recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan."

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan criticized Trump's move and said it "has brought the region to the edge of a new crisis."

Egypt's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said: "Everybody should respect the resolutions of international legitimacy and the United Nations Charter in respect of the inadmissibility of acquiring land by force."

Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Trump's announcement was "unacceptable and illegal."

Syria's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said: "Syria is determined to recover the Golan through all available means. The Golan was and will remain Syrian."

What's next: It's still unclear if Russia or other countries will try to bring the issue to the UN Security Council or General Assembly in order to try to isolate the U.S. After Trump's announcement that he would move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem in 2017, the U.S. had to veto a resolution in the Security Council — and lost in a vote in the General Assembly as around 130 member states voted against the U.S. move.