But in the '60s the Heights were contentious because being "up high" meant that Syrian artillery could easily shell greater distances into Israel, firing their artillery mostly horizontally while counterstrikes by Israeli artillery had to expend most of the artillery's kinetic energy on just overcoming height. The alternative was to send planes into Syrian airspace, which, of course, Syria greatly squawked about.



The rest of the dispute involved water resource demarcations, which the Syrians didn't opt to respect. Officially Syrian territory included some of the streams feeding the Sea of Galilee and their drainage basins but not the Sea itself: Their territorial claims stopped at the waterline and they had no claim to any water once in the Sea. They didn't see it that way; it's hard to be standing a few feet from a large fresh-water resource and say, "Yeah, not mine. It belongs to my enemies." It's even harder to be a farmer in Syria and for the Israel-hating government to punish you for crossing the border illegally and stealing water resources you need from the enemy you both hate.

Are responsible for many of the Middle East disputes! Rarely discussed. Thank you!

does not mean it is ethically or legally right to take it or keep it once taken.

Life is complicated that way sometimes.

The Appalachian Trail has lots of varieties of apples. The Red River Valley runs through Moscow.