Israel / Syria: Turkish-mediated talks bring Golan Heights and water issues back to the table

Israel and Syria are holding indirect peace talks in Istanbul through Turkish mediators. This marks the first official confirmation that contacts have resumed since 2000. The two governments said they had declared their intent to conduct these talks in good faith and with an open mind, with the goal of reaching a comprehensive peace. Peace with Syria would require Israel to withdraw from the Golan Heights, a strategic plateau which Israel captured in the 1967 war and has occupied ever since.

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The main point of contention concerns a narrow strip of land along the Sea of Galilee, which Israel wants to keep to ensure its control of vital water supplies. On the ground, this gap is just several hundred meters. The sticking point is Syria’s demand for land reaching the northeastern shore of the inland sea.

“The key issue between Israel and Syria is first and foremost the strategic importance, from an Israeli perspective, of the Golan Heights”, said David Newman is a Professor of Political Geography and a Senior Research Fellow at Ben-Gurion University in Israel. “Second most important issue is the water issue, because much of Israel’s water sources in a region of scarce water, and it’s coming in from the Golan, and there’s no question that Israel would want to negotiate a very serious water-sharing agreement or some sort of water agreement with Syria if the Golan Heights were to be returned as part of an agreement”, Newman added.

See (video) and read more (transcript): Real New Network, 22 May 2008

According to reports in the Arab media, while the previous discussions in May were of a general nature, the next round of talks starting in June will focus on the details of four separate issues of a possible peace accord: borders, security aspects, water and normalisation.

Read more: Jerusalem Post, 10 Jun 2008

Iraq, Kurdistan: Fears of Cholera Epidemic

A rash of patients hospitalised with diarrhoea and vomiting in northern Iraq has raised fears of a cholera outbreak across the region. In April 2008, the main hospital in Sulaimaniyah received an average of 25 patients per day with such symptoms – which are very similar to those associated with cholera. While no cases of the disease have been confirmed, officials are worried.

An outbreak in the region last year led to 2,000 infections and 24 deaths. Hardest hit was the northern city of Sulaimaniyah, where 14 people died.

Health officials said a lack of clean drinking water and rising temperatures in the region could spark a similar epidemic this year. The former coupled with poor sanitation was to blame for last year’s outbreak, which began in the province of Kirkuk and spread throughout Iraqi Kurdistan as well as Baghdad.

Read more: Azeez Mahmood, IWPR, 02 May 2008