Ha’aretz‘s Marcus: Golan, “Simply a Lovely Area,” Devoid of Jewish History
While Op-Ed writers are certainly entitled — and should — voice their opinions for or against Israel’s relinquishing of the Golan Heights to Syria, they are not entitled to misrepresent history. Ha’aretz’s Yoel Marcus did just that in his column today, “Peace with Syria is more urgent,” in which he erases thousands of years of Jewish history in the Golan Heights. He writes:
The price tag is clear. It’s the Golan Heights. But unlike the places to be discussed in proximity talks and direct negotiations with the Palestinians, the Golan is not a holy site. Neither Abraham our patriarch nor Sarah our matriarch are buried there, and returning it for peace would not involve all those messianic emotions with which the Greater Land of Israel people are imbued. It’s simply a lovely area.
Simply a lovely area, and not for example, an area that Moses allotted to half the tribe of Menashe in the earlier biblical period. Also before 953 BCE, the city of Golan was set aside as a city of refuge for alleged murderers awaiting trial and served as a Levitical city for the family of Gershon. In the first Temple Period, the city was seized from Jewish control by the Aramean king, but reconquered by King Joash in 784 BCE. The region was then conquered by the Assyrian emperor, who exiles the Jews, who returned again to the Golan during the Second Temple Period.
In 30 BCE 30-20 King Herod gradually acquires all of Bashan from Emperor Augustus. Jews from Palestine and Babylonia settle in Bashan and again declare the area a part of the Land of Israel. In 67 CE, Josephus commands the Jewish army in the region during the Great Jewish Revolt. Gamla, the chief city in the Golan, is the last stronghold against the Roman Legions. Jewish settlement, however, continues and even thrives following the failed revolt.
Modern archeological finds dating from the Talmudic period include remnants of 25 synagogues and Jewish artifacts from more than 100 sites in the region. Jewish settlements are completely wiped out following the Islamic conquest until Jewish resettlement takes hold in the 1880s.
A lovely place, yes, with a few thousand years of Jewish history to boot. See here for CAMERA’s complete Golan timeline.
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