Definitions from the Syrian-Israeli conflict lexicon
February 3, 2007
Well that’s interesting. So you have your land occupied, and you fight a war to get it back, and it’s called an "invasion" (a “joint Arab invasion” to be precise). That’s the 1973 October War for you, an invasion.
In contrast, the initial invasion of Arab lands by Israel is called “capture.” You see, the plateau was ”captured from Syria by Israel in 1967 during the Six Day War,” which from this description sounds like it just was an inevitable, unfortunate turn of events, rather than a unilateral, simultaneous Israeli attack on several Arab countries. They might as well have written that “The Golan Heights were just running around in the wild and Israel decided to capture them for safekeeping.” Other equally imprecise reports describe the Golan as having been “seized from Syria in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.”
It gets worse: the Golan Heights plateau, apparently, is “one of the most contentious strips of land on the planet.” Really? Why is that? What exactly is controversial or debatable about which country has the rightful ownership of the Golan Heights? Are there no history books around? Are there no UN resolutions mentioning it?
And that’s The Independent! Imagine the other media.
It seems to me that the PPP (Peace Park Plan), also known as the secret Syrian-Israeli track 2 talks, which Syrian officials are still refusing to publicly acknowledge, is being dragged on and on not only because it is big news, but also so that the media has something different to write about. Apparently, nothing interesting is happening in Palestine or Iraq, same old same old. Seriously though, and, more importantly, by describing the Golan long enough as “contentious” or “captured” (the latter being technically correct, but misleading), or other similarly vague terms, public opinion will increasingly regard it as a “painful concession” which peace-loving Israel is generously, needlessly giving UP, not BACK, just so that it can finally have peace, while the warring, violent Syrians get what is not rightfully theirs just so that the region can breathe.
This might seem exaggerated to someone unfamiliar with the intricacies of long-term public relations and propaganda campaigns, but I say this as a marketing and media professional. For examples of how this works, remember the Wexner Analysis.
My father was always opposed to the equation of "land for peace" and spoke about it repeatedly. He was so right. It implies Israel is asked to give up - not back - land to receive peace, and it implies Arabs are getting something for nothing. This is dangerous and unfair.
For the past few years, in conferences, seminars or different meetings, I’ve spoken about the need for Palestinians and concerned Arabs to start preparing a professional, targeted campaign for June 5, 2007 – also known as the sad 40th anniversary of the Israeli invasion of the West Bank, Jerusalem, Gaza, Sinai, and of course, the Golan Heights. Have you seen anything around? I haven’t. All that is left to see are "facts on the ground."
