evidence: Golan Heights: Why it matters to US, Israel and Syria [...] The Golan was Syrian territory until 1967, when Israel occupied it in the Six-Day War and later annexed it. The 1981 annexation was not recognized internationally and UN Security Council Resolutions determined Israeli sovereignty over the area to be null and void pending negotiations with Syria. [...] The Golan is a hilly, 1,200-square-kilometer (460-square-mile) plateau overlooking Lebanon, Syria and the Jordan Valley.