evidence: What is the Golan Heights? The Golan Heights is a rocky plateau in southwestern Syria, about 60km (40 miles) south of Damascus. It is bordered by the Yarmouk river in the south and the Sea of Galilee in the west. [...] - Besides the United States, no country formally recognises Israel’s annexation of the region. All other countries consider the Golan to be Syrian territory occupied by Israel, - In 1981, the UN Security Council unanimously passed a resolution opposing Israel’s occupation of the Golan Heights, calling on Israel to rescind its imposition of Israeli law on the plateau. It declared Israel’s rule over Golan "null and void and without international legal effect".