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Saudi Arabia Denounces US Recognition of Golan Heights as Israeli Territory


Tourists pose for photograph next to a mock road sign for Damascus, the capital of Syria, and other capitals and cities and a cutout of a soldier, in an old outpost in the Israeli controlled Golan Heights near the border with Syria, March 22, 2019.
Tourists pose for photograph next to a mock road sign for Damascus, the capital of Syria, and other capitals and cities and a cutout of a soldier, in an old outpost in the Israeli controlled Golan Heights near the border with Syria, March 22, 2019.

Saudi Arabia denounced U.S. President Donald Trump's recognition of Israel's 1981 annexation of the Golan Heights, a statement released by the Saudi Press Agency said early on Tuesday.

"Attempts to impose fait accompli do not change the facts," the statement said. It said the Golan Heights was an "occupied Syrian Arab land in accordance with the relevant international resolutions."

"It will have significant negative effects on the peace process in the Middle East and the security and stability of the region," it said.

President Donald Trump smiles at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, after signing a proclamation in the Diplomatic Reception Room at the White House in Washington, Monday, March 25, 2019.
President Donald Trump smiles at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, after signing a proclamation in the Diplomatic Reception Room at the White House in Washington, Monday, March 25, 2019.

​Trump, with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu looking over his shoulder during a visit to Washington, signed a proclamation on Monday officially granting U.S. recognition of the Golan Heights as Israeli territory.

Israel seized the Golan Heights from Syria in the 1967 Middle East War and annexed it in 1981 in a move not recognized internationally.

The Saudi Press Agency report described Monday's declaration as a clear violation of the United Nations Charter and of international law.

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