The minaret of a mosque amidst the rubble of buildings struck by Israel in Shebaa in southern Lebanon, on Nov. 27, 2024. (Credit: AFP)
The "Syrian" Shebaa Farms? Comments by former Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Joumblatt on Sunday in Damascus concerning these few disputed kilometers of the Golan, between Lebanon, Syria and Israel, have caused reactions in the region and on the internet, bringing back to the forefront the quarrel over the territory.
After an association of Arkoub, a Sunni region of the Hasbaya district which includes five villages including Shebaa, the Sehbaa municipality commented on Joumblatt's statements, the first Lebanese political figure to meet the new Syrian authorities.
Joumblatt's statements "do not reflect the historical and geographical reality or the aspirations of our people to preserve their sovereignty," the municipality wrote in a statement. The hamlets of Shebaa are "an integral part of Lebanese territory," according to the text which denounced the questioning of Lebanese sovereignty over this small territory as an "attack on the dignity of the inhabitants."
The State must "intensify its diplomatic efforts to consolidate Lebanese law on the Shebaa farms, both regionally and internationally," the municipality said.
A 'lie' or a 'gift' from Joumblatt?
On social media, the controversy is taking a partisan turn. Many users accused Jumblatt of having “sold” or “offered” the territory to the Syrians, some sharing excerpts from speeches by the former leader of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, who notably stated in May 2019 that the Lebanese authorities claim their sovereignty over this territory. Other posts by internet users who appear to be close to the party's opposed to the “axis of resistance,” are basing the statements of Jumblatt and other officials, such as the leader of the Kataeb party Samy Gemayel, to emphasize that, according to them, the Lebanese claim to the Shebaa Farms is a “lie” used to justify maintaining Hezbollah’s weapons.
The debate over this land, some 14 kilometers long and 2 kilometers wide, is back in the spotlight at a time when the issue of Hezbollah's arsenal is at the heart of discussions, almost a month after the cease-fire with Israel and while the truce agreement requires the party's withdrawal north of the Litani River. This issue is also being addressed, while the fall of the Assad government raised many questions concerning the management of various issues between Lebanon and Syria.
'Still too early'
Responding to a question from the press during his visit to Damascus, Joumblatt stated that the issue of the Shebaa Farms is included in U.N. Security Council Resolution 242.
"If the demarcation" of the border between the Lebanese and Syrian states indicates that this territory is Lebanese, "we will accept it, but the Shebaa Farms are Syrian," he said.
Joumblatt's argument is based on U.N. Security Council Resolution 242, which was adopted on Nov. 22, 1967, after the Six-Day War between Israel on one side and Egypt, Syria and Jordan on the other. It was during this conflict that Israel captured large territories from its neighbors, including the Golan Heights. The Shebaa Farms were included in the territory taken from Syria, while Lebanon, which had not participated in the war, did not make a claim. The resolution, which emphasized "the inadmissibility of acquiring territory through war," called for "the withdrawal of Israeli armed forces from the territories occupied during the recent conflict."
The issue of the farms was also discussed during Joumblatt's meeting with Ahmad al-Shareaa, leader of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), at the head of the rebel coalition now in power.
During a press briefing, Sharaa said that "it is still too early to talk about it, knowing that we are in a transition phase." On several occasions since the fall of the Syrian government, Sharaa has also stated that his country will no longer have "negative interference in Lebanon" whose sovereignty, territorial integrity, independence of decision and stability it will respect.
National file vs. 'personal calculations'
Bashar al-Assad's government repeatedly stated orally that the Shebaa Farms were indeed Lebanese, without however ever signing a map demarcating its border with Lebanon confirming these statements to the U.N., as was requested by Resolution 1680, adopted in May 2006. This Security Council resolution "strongly encouraged the Syrian government to follow up on the request made by the Lebanese government ... to demarcate their common border, especially in areas where it is uncertain or contested." As a result of Syria's inaction, under international law, this territory is still considered Syrian even though it was annexed by Israel.
On Sunday, the Sons of Arkoub and Shebaa Farms Organization said in a statement that "the borders are already drawn" despite the "Zionist occupation" of this territory.
"We refer Joumblatt and others to Resolution 1701, which explicitly mentions the Shebaa Farms, confirms Resolution 425 and never mentions Resolution 242 concerning the farms."
The organization also called on Lebanese officials "to remove this national issue from personal calculations." Resolution 425 adopted in 1978 stipulated the Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory. Resolution 1701 ended the 2006 war and allowed a cease-fire between Hezbollah and Israel on Nov. 27. Its text called for the implementation of resolution 1680, in particular, the provisions relating to the delimitation of the border "including by addressing the issue of the Shebaa Farms."
Lebanon had largely lost control of the Shebaa Farms to Syria in 1958, when the army of the United Arab Republic positioned itself in the area, to the indifference of the authorities, against a backdrop of tensions with the then president Camille Chamoun.
Joumblatt already stated on several occasions that the Shebaa Farms did not belong to Lebanon, notably in 2019, in an interview with Russia Today.
This article was originally published in French in L'Orient-Le Jour.