On video: IDF activity in the Genin refugee camp.
(IDF spokesperson)
The Ein Pith historical heritage site in the Golan Heights, or at least significant parts of it, could become a combat training ground in a built-up area - this is the fear of the Council for the Preservation of Sites, which in recent weeks has received many inquiries regarding the Ministry of Defense's intention to do so.
The council appealed to the ministry and other security forces to avoid any damage to the compound.
Ein Pith, located on the northern slopes of the Golan Heights, was a village of Syrians of Alawite origin, one of several villages established in the area at the beginning of the 17th century.
At the beginning of the 60s of the last century, about 1,500 residents lived in the village.
Until 1967, the compound was also used by the Syrian army.
During the Six Day War, the village was captured by the 8th Brigade and its residents fled to Syria.
The Council for the Preservation of Sites stated that despite the many damages the complex has suffered over the years, it still remains a complete set of cultural landscape, which includes the remains of residential buildings and agricultural facilities, historic roads, a spring house, agricultural fences, wells and orchards.
All of these allow visitors to get an impression of the types and construction technologies of a rural texture in the region, and the way in which this construction integrates into the topography and landscape of the northern plateau.
May become a combat training ground in a built-up area.
Ein Pith (photo: official website, the Council for the Preservation of Heritage Sites in Israel)
The place is a center of attraction for travelers and is visited by thousands of visitors every year.
One of the points of interest on the site is the "Uri Ilan Trail" that passes through the place.
The trail commemorates the IDF fighter, who along with four other fighters were captured by the Syrians in 1954, near Ein Pith. The members of the squad were on an intelligence mission and their job was to change the battery in a wiretapping device that was attached to a telephone line of the Syrian army. The five were taken to the "Al Maza" prison in Damascus , where they were separated and interrogated under severe torture. Uri Ilan committed suicide in captivity, and in his last moments he poked holes with a wooden toothpick on a page from the book "Revenge of the Fathers". The holes he punched created the words: "I did not betray". This act became one of the myths of heroism known in the history of the Israel Defense Forces. To.
Uri Ben Zioni, Director of the Northern District of the Council for the Preservation of Sites stated that "besides its importance as a witness and remnant of the life of the Syrian villages in the northern Golan Heights, the views from the village on the oil axis are also a testimony to the legacy of the IDF's battle, since Mein Pith was attacked by Golan forces during the Battle of Tel Pachar, until conquered at the end of that battle.
The Council for the Preservation of Sites calls on the Ministry of Defense and the security forces not to damage the Ein Pith complex.
The remains of the village's buildings and the many elements that were preserved in it - constitute an important and rare historical asset, which must be preserved intact for the benefit of the public."
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To the full article
The trail commemorates the IDF fighter who, along with 4 other fighters, was captured by the Syrians. The Uri Ilan trail (photo: official website, from photographs by Yehudit Grain-Kel, from the wikiwiki website)
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IDF spokesman's response
"The 'Ein Pith' compound is defined as a fire area and has been used for live fire training by the IDF since 1982. Today, the compound is visited by many travelers who enter the area without the required permits and expose themselves to safety risks.
In the planned complex, IDF forces will train without 'live fire', and its arrangement will improve the accessibility of the complex to the public in a safe manner on the weekends, in contrast to the current situation. The IDF is aware of the sensitivity of the environmental values in the complex and works in full coordination with all the relevant authorities in order to realize its mission without damage to natural sites".
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