Scud missiles launched from Iraq, aimed at Israel, flew overhead almost every night. Constant tensionĭuring the 1991 Gulf War, the United Nations forces in the Golan Heights were on high alert. Lieutenant-Colonel Ethell is one of Canada’s most decorated peacekeepers. A year later, he again successfully arranged a similar exchange of more than 150 prisoners. Lieutenant-Colonel Ethell completed the exchange, which involved more than 300 prisoners of war and soldier remains. The situation was tense and violence was a possibility. He made delicate last-minute arrangements for a large prisoner and body exchange between Israel and Syria. In 1984, Lieutenant-Colonel Donald Ethell was Canada’s Force Commander in the Golan Heights. Department of National Defence IS2008-1292 Canadian heroes Observation Post 73 stands on top of a hill in the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization mission area in the Golan Heights. A ceasefire between Syria and Israel didn’t take place until seven months later, in May 1974. Israel and Egypt reached a ceasefire agreement within weeks. That territory included an area between Syria and Israel called the Golan Heights. In the Yom Kippur War of 1973, Syria and Egypt attempted to regain territory that Israel had captured during the Six-Day War in 1967. It is located along the eastern edge of the Mediterranean Sea.Ĭonflicts between Arab nations and Israel have defined much of Syria’s history in the last 75 years. Syria is a small Middle Eastern country with a population of approximately 21 million people. Canadian Armed Forces members who served in Syria have a deep understanding of how fragile peace is – and how important it is to protect. These are visual reminders of on-going tensions that could still erupt into flashes of violence. Barbed wire, trenches and the wreckage of past conflicts between two bitter foes is still present. The Golan Heights is a high plateau in the Middle East. More than 12,000 Canadians have served in this region since the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force began there. This makes it one of our longest-running international commitments. Canada has been a peacekeeping presence in the Golan Heights of Syria since 1974.
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