People have once again taken to the streets across Syria to protest US President Donald Trump’s recent recognition of Israeli “sovereignty” over the occupied Golan Heights.
Fresh rallies were held in the capital, Damascus, and several other Syrian cities and towns to denounce the unilateral decision by Trump, the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported on Monday.
Demonstrations were held in the different neighborhoods of Damascus and its countryside. A rally was also held at a cultural center in the northeastern city of Qamishli.
Syrians also rallied in the various towns and villages of the province of Quneitra, near the Golan Heights. Dozens of activists gathered in the town of Jibbat al-Khashab in denunciation of Trump’s decision. They held banners and raised national flags to assert that “Golan is Arab and Syrian land.”
Social activists and local political groups also organized a mass gathering in the southwestern city of Sweida.
In Dayr al-Zawr, at a protest gathering organized by Awqaf Directorate, people censured Trump’s move, stressing that “it violates the resolutions of the UN Security Council.” They pledged to return the territory to the Syrian motherland.
Trump signed a proclamation recognizing Israeli “sovereignty” over the occupied Golan last Monday, triggering a global outcry.
World countries — including Iran, Turkey, Lebanon, Russia, and the European Union (EU) — have rejected the decision. So has Syria.
In 1967, Israel waged a full-scale war against Arab territories, during which it occupied a large swathe of Golan and annexed it in 1981, a move never recognized by the international community.
Syria has repeatedly reaffirmed its sovereignty over the Golan Heights, saying the territory must be completely restored to its control.