Deadly strike in the Golan Heights risks opening new front in long-disputed territory

(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)

Mireille Rebeiz, Dickinson College

(THE CONVERSATION) A missile strike that killed 12 children playing soccer in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on July 27, 2024, has prompted international concern that the Middle East conflict could expand into the disputed territory.

Israel has blamed the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, and it has already conducted retaliatory strikes, with more expected.

To explain the importance of the Golan Heights and what the latest strike could indicate, The Conversation turned to Mireille Rebeiz, a scholar of Lebanese studies and chair of Middle East Studies at Dickinson College.

What is the Golan Heights?

Located in southwestern Syria, the Golan Heights is 1,200 square kilometers (460 square miles) of mainly stony hills that overlook Syria, Lebanon and Jordan.

Today, over 40,000 people live there. More than half are Arab Druze, including...