A new report published by Kan News on Wednesday evening reveals that Israel considered relinquishing the territory of Mount Dov and the Shebaa Farms to Syria in return for Syria suspending its claims to the Golan Heights.
The territory, which is located on the Israeli border with Lebanon and has been under Israeli control since 1967 and under Israeli sovereignty since the passing of the Golan Law in 1981, is claimed by both Lebanon and Syria. Being that it is not directly bordering Syrian territory, such a transfer would leave it as a Syrian exclave in Israeli territory.
According to the report, the American initiative was proposed as part of the negotiations between the two countries, which were stopped after Sunni militias and government forces massacred Syrian Druze residents of the Suweida region. However, the report states that the sides are not ruling out the renewal of talks in the future.
The report also noted that Israel examined the internal political feasibility of such a deal, which would require either a national referendum or a majority of Knesset members.
Kan News cited a source close to the Syrian government who did not rule out a connection between the issue of Mount Dov and that of the Golan Heights after the two countries reach a security agreement. However, he denied that the issue was being discussed as part of the negotiations for a security agreement. According to the source, "There are currently more pressing matters such as Jabal al-Druz. Mount Dov needs to be solved as part of the drawing of borders between Israel, Syria, and Lebanon.
The source did not rule out the possibility that the issue of Mount Dov could be linked to the question of the Golan Heights later on. Another source familiar with the negotiations confirmed to Kan News that the matter is not currently on the agenda and will only be raised for discussion at a later stage.