15 December 2006

Arab Media Watch expresses its disappoint that not a single British national newspaper, nor the BBC, reported yesterday's 25th anniversary of Israel's annexation of Syria's Golan Heights, despite AMW's press release and fact sheet of 11 December 2006.

http://www.arabmediawatch.com/amw/Articles/Analysis/tabid/75/newsid395/3499/Fact-sheet-The-Golan-Heights-and-prospects-for-Syrian-Israeli-peace/Default.aspx

"Whether one likes it or not, Syria is seen as an increasingly pivotal player in terms of Middle East stability, particularly with regard to the Arab-Israeli conflict and the crises in Iraq, Lebanon and Palestine. Furthermore, the recent Iraq Study Group report urged Israel to give the Golan Heights back to Syria in return for peace. As such, it is highly puzzling that the 25th anniversary of the illegal annexation of a territory that is central to Syria's grievances and the Arab-Israeli conflict should pass totally unnoticed," said AMW chairman Sharif Hikmat Nashashibi.

"The public should be informed of this important issue, and as a key to peace in the region, the Golan Heights deserves to be in the media and political spotlight, particularly at this critical point in time."

The following are available for interview:

Sharif Hikmat Nashashibi: AMW chairman and co-author of the fact sheet, Tel: 07956 455 528, sharif@arabmediawatch.com

Guy Gabriel: AMW advisor and co-author of the fact sheet, Tel: 07815 747 729, guy@arabmediawatch.com

Rime Allaf: AMW member and associate fellow of the Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House), Tel: 07713 156 531, ra@rimeallaf.com

Arab Media Watch is an independent, non-profit watchdog set up in 2000 to strive for objective coverage of Arab issues in the British media.