A region that borders southwestern Syria, southern Lebanon, northeastern Israel and northwestern Jordan. Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria during the War of 1967 and formally annexed the region in December 1981, although the annexation has not been recognized internationally. The area is an important source of water, and has strategic military implications as well. The 20,000-strong Syrian Druze community, many of whom lived in the area prior to 1967, now live under Israeli rule. There are more than 30 Jewish Israeli settlements in the Golan Heights, inhabited by approximately 20,000 settlers. The return of the Golan Heights to Syria by Israel has proven to be a major stumbling block for a Syrian-Israeli peace treaty. See Bickerton, Ian J and Carla L. Klausner. A History of the Arab-Israeli Conflict, 5th ed. New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2007; and “Regions and territories: The Golan Heights.” 10 August 2010. BBC. 21 July 2011. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/country_profiles/3393813.stm. For information about the Syrian Druze community, see Kershner, Isabel. “In the Golan Heights, Anxious Eyes Look East.” New York Times. 21 May 2011. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/22/world/middleeast/22golan.html.  http://www.justvision.org/glossary/golan-heights