Syrian Golan women play key national and political role against occupation
Since the first day of Israel’s occupation of the Syrian Golan in 1967, women have engaged in the battle of steadfastness and peaceful resistance against occupation that has practiced inhuman and suppressive acts against Golan people.
This is what the Syrian Lawyer and Women’s right activist Rasha Alhalah said during an interview with the Syria Times e-newspaper about Syrian Golan women’s role in confronting occupation.
Mrs. Alhalah made it clear that the struggle of Syrian women in the Israeli occupied Golan manifested in preserving national identity and clinging to the land in order to confront the Zionist military rule.
“Golan women, who are one of the strongest Syrian women, have brought up their children and educated them to be patriotic to their homeland, and they have enhanced family relations. They have played a pivotal role at economic, social and political levels. They played key national and political role as they took part in protest and secret struggle against occupation forces despite being arrested and killed by Zionist entity,” the lawyer emphasized.
She went on to say that Syrian Golan women have consistently denounced international silence towards their suffering as occupation forces prevent them from communicating with their families in the homeland.
The Syrian Golan women were meeting her relatives at Quneitra crossing which was closed between 2012 and 2013 when al-Nusra Front terrorists captured the area.
“Quneitra crossing with the occupied Syrian Golan was closed between 2012 and 2013 after al-Nusra Front terrorists had captured the area and it was opened by the Israeli enemy to convey wounded terrorists to be treated in Israeli hospitals. But this crossing was re-opened by Syrian army in 2018,” Mrs. alhalah said.
She asserted that the foreign-backed terror war on Syria over the past 8 years has boosted Golan women’s clinging to land and steadfastness.
“Many of Golan women’s sons were martyred in the ongoing war in Syria and their mothers could neither bid farewell to them nor attend their funeral services,” the activist added, affirming that the willpower of Golan people achieved victory over Zionist entity’s policies.
“Golan people had tried to prevent the convey of terrorists to Israeli hospitals through the Quneitra crossing and many of them were arrested,” the lawyer stressed, pointing out that there are no statistics on the number of detainees in Israeli jails in the occupied Golan because those who are responsible for statistics consider the detainees as criminals without trial.
“A lot of women took part in protests against Israeli occupation and some of them were arrested by the enemy for many years. Here we mention Najah Maddah, Rasmeyeh Abo Saleh, Beheyeh Armon al-Jawhari, Amal Mahmod, Nihal al-Maqet….Golan women rejected annexation resolution in 1981 and Zionist entity’s attempts to impose their identity on the people of Golan.”
Moreover, the activist referred to the fact that Syrian Golan women’s struggle dates back to almost 100 years ago.
“We must not forget that Syrian women fought alongside men in Jebbata al-khashab battle in 1920s when French occupation forces had gathered to kill revolutionaries. Many women were martyred and among them we mention Khdejeh Saleh Maryod and Ghalya Farhat,” she clarified .
The lawyer concluded by saying that the suffering of Syrian Golan people continues despite the calls of international organization to put pressures on occupation authorities to release Syrian detainees from Israeli jails, including Sudqi al-Maqt.
Al-Maqt, a resident and freedom-fighter in the Israeli-occupied Golan, served the longest prison sentence in Israeli jails. He was re-detained by the Israeli authorities on February 25th, 2015, after he had already spent 27 years in Israeli prisons and was released in August 2012.
Related link:
http://syriatimes.sy/index.php/golan/38715-dean-of-syrian-detainees
Interviewed by: Basma Qaddour