When I first read the above article I was hesitant to waste my energy in writing this response because the obvious is clear to all of us, Olmert is an idiot, I can't help but to think that he has more interest in the Arab and Palestinian people and no interest in protecting our land and our people. Olmert is trying to be a hero but in the end he is going to be the reason we suffer.

Finally a voice in the media who is standing up to these kind of suicidal proposals. Thanks, mr. Dore Gold. May many follow and may we see the Golan forever be part of Israel.

is academic now. Let's talk instead of what is to be done if the government decides to go ahead with the withdrawal. What is the Knesset opposition going to do? What are Israeli non-governmental leaders and Israelis going to do? How are the IDF chiefs going to react? Are there any plans, any suggestions? Or is apathy, hand wringing, empty threats and endless discussions on the details of the withdrawal going to be the only available responses to this outrage? This is a most critical juncture for Israel. Maybe diplomatic talk has no place in a crisis like this. This is a time for decisive action.

The Golan SURRENDER was mapped out last summer before these two TRAITORS SURRENDERED to Nasrallah. Doesn't ANYBODY remember Assad instructing his cabinet to start purchasing plots in the Golan DURING the war? Doesn't ANYBODY remember Livni's "committee" established to discuss the logistics of the Golan SURRENDER in OCTOBER? This is a done deal from a long time ago. Soon the Israeli population will wake up and realize that Olmert & Livni are on the ayatollahs' payroll.

That since most Israelies are not torah observent Jews, they have a hard time dealing with the reality of Israel, and why they are there,and how much more can they suffer until they give up on the whole entire Israel and go move to a different country.

Olmert is willing to gamble away the security of the state so he can keep his seat. This is when i wish Israel were like Turkey and the military would step in and arrest arrest him for putting the citizens of the state at risk. He will not only go down as the worst leader Israel has ever had, he will go down as the leader who was prepared to sacrifice the whole country in order to save himself, a truly evil man. Many more questions need to be asked then the respected Dore Gold has written in this articule.

Whatever he says is nothing less than gold- if only the Israeli public would have his intelligence and level headedness

olmert is not stupid,if olmert came out and said okay you can have the golans for nothing i would be worried, but assad is not going to several ties with iran and the home grown terror groups and olmert knows this, this was just to see how serious syria was about peace.!!!!! nothing to worry about, god bless the state of israel.

FOR A MAJOR CIVIL-DISOBEDIENCE CAMPAIGN. This article is good but it doesn't mention the 20,000 Israelis now living on the Heights, old-style Zionists willing to live in a relatively dangerous, less convenient place far from the country's population centers, some of whom have built and cultivated communities for FORTY YEARS. If the population tolerates the government even starting to TALK about destroying these communities, without mounting a major civil-disobedience campaign, then the public deserves its horrible fate under these "leaders."

At last someone is talking with common sense! Indeed stop all this folding up before we have even started. Olmert is an IDIOT - and he must go! The Golan Heights is much more important that his arse sitting on the PM's chair.

unless you are willing to risk a future war ...

I would also ask is Syria willing to consider a territorial concession "payment in full", and an end to all bilateral and regional issues with Israel or will it continue to insist that Israel allow the entry of Palestinians currently living in refugee camps in Syria? Will Syria abide by the normal request that it not enter into any bilateral military agreements with countries hostile (not at peace) with Israel? Will Syria agree to refrain from all activity in Lebanon that could harm Israel? I think that the answer will be no to all of these questions.

Dore Gold may have no children to care about their future and the future of their children. His analysis is so biased so he is pushing his country to a future desaster. The kind of arrogance that Israelis used to have will transform one day in real bitterness. Maybe Dore Gold will not be there to see that but his childern will be.

In §6. you write:The Golan has been in Israel's hands more years than it has been in Syria's hands. it's true and untrue at the same time. But let's go back to history. On the 24th of July 1922, the League of Nations voted a resolution composed of 28 articles and adopted unanimously by all its members named Britain the Mandatory of Palestine in order to implement the creation of the Jewish National Home. This document that may be considered as the most important one concerning, in modern times, the Jewish people and Zionism, stated in its preamble, for the first time ever (and this will never happen again, even after the Shoa) and I quote: "Whereas recognition has thereby been given to the historical connection of the Jewish people with Palestine and to the grounds for reconstituting their national home in that country". The Golan Heights were an integral part of the Palestine territory as decided by the League! Article 5 of the League's resolutions states: "the Mandatory shall be responsible for seeing that no Palestine territory shall be ceded or leased, or in any way placed under the control of, the Government of any foreign Power". Nevertheless, Britain, in total breach of article 5, ceded in 1923 the Golan Heights to France, the Mandatory of Syria. Extensive Jewish landholdings on the Golan, much of them purchased by the Rothschilds to establish agricultural communities, were subsequently nationlized by Syria after that country won its independence from France in 1946. Britain also breached article 6 of the League's resolution imposing them to facilitate Jewish immigration,by introducing the "White Paper" policy, and thus preventing Jews to reach Palestine in order to save their lives.In both cases the zionist movement, and especially concerning mass immigration, it was not really their goal. In this context I quote Moshe Sharett: "bring in the good, an leave the rabble". After the Holocaust, israeli establishment succeded in sweeping all this important part of history under the carpet. The League's resolutioins from 1922 dissapeared from history books, and amazing, even the original document dissapeared from the archives of the League, in Genève. Luckily you find the text on Internet, a copy af the official journal of the League. Now Mr. Gold accept the challenge and tell all the truth to your nation.

I do not see the people of Israel voting for national suicide

I have never seen a country and a people that is willing to committ suicide for a "piece". I can understand getting out for Gaza from a demographic situation, but there are almost as many jews as druze in the golan! This is a strategic piece of land that Israel really needs for her security, as opposed to the useless gaza strip! Besides, as other talkbacks have stated, Syria is an internationally isolated state! Israel seems to be acting like the abused child of the arab world, who is willing to do ANYTHING to have the parent love them! Wake up before its too late!

why not adopt a Hong Kong solution, rent the heights for 100 years to build up mutual confidence esatblishing a longer period at later date for hermon if confidence does not take root.

To me all his objections come from premise "we should give up easily". For me "we MUST NOT" even consider Gollan. 2 reasons. eash one vital. 1. WATER. in 10-20 years water will be more preciose then GOLD in ME. who here think we can drink see water? 2. Asads are not forever. Very soon Syria will be under Hezballa-AlKaeda types. Giving up Gollan for few years of hudna is MADNESS.

I never thought I would say this but you make a good point. But our military is not as independant as in Turkey. At the higher echelons, they are as much political appointees as military leaders. But in the unlikely event of a military coup, I have to say that I would be hard-pressed to oppose it. This is undoubtably the saddest thing that I have ever posted in a talkback.

I Sincerely hope Israel does NOT give back the Golan. The leaders need to learn from history.....the land for peace deals have not worked and will not work.

we should cede first dore (aka inspector clousot) back to the u.s.

Mate, why dont you give Australia back to the Aborigines, they were there before you, and worry about your own local land grab! There is no similarity between the 2...

Golan was obtained fair and square. That is why most in US security establishment recognized this. Syria used Golan for years to attack Israel, to fire upon Jewish farms from the Heights. Israel captured Golan in war of self-defense. Just like West Bank (Judea and Samaria). This is Jewish land. Why give it to an inveterate enemy? Mr. Olmert seems to be mored concerned for the welfare of our enemies than he is for his own people.

NATION labor STRIKE NEEDED TO FORCE ELECTIONS. No more one sided concessions,

I'm beginning to read more comments, here and on other websites, referring directly or indirectly to a need for military intervention. This idea, extreme as it sounds, seems to be the only alternative to a government paralized with politics of the worst kind. I've read the J. Post's column by Sarah Honig on the tactics employed in the Labor primaries and it's disgusting how things are manipulated in the electoral system in Israel. The government system itself needs to be overhauled and politicians won't do it because it's to their personal advantage to keep it as it is, even at the cost of the future of the country. The will of the Israeli people is being thwarted. Most Israelis are against giving away more land, yet Olmert proceeds ahead, listening to a Left that has hardly any support in the country, and to the US, that needs to sacrifice Israel to withdraw from Iraq with some assurances from the Arab countries. Israel's land is what they demand as a price, and the Americans are happy to comply. And Olmert, who knows how his mind works. Maybe he thinks he'll make up for his Lebanon 2 fiasco by concluding a peace treaty with the Syrians! Something needs to be done, and it needs to be done now, before it's too late. No land for peace!