The text of the disengagement agreement between Syria and Israel signed in 1974

The full text of the US-brokered disengagement agreement between Syria and Israel, signed in May 1974.

Following the October 1973 war waged by Syria and Egypt against Israel, US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger engaged in shuttle diplomacy between Syria and Israel, which culminated on May 28, 1974, in an understanding with then-Syrian President Hafez al Assad regarding disengagement arrangements in the Golan Heights.

On the 31st of the same month, the official signing took place in Geneva by Israeli Chief of Staff Mordechai Gur and his Syrian counterpart, Hikmat Shihabi, in the presence of the United Nations.

Commitment to a ceasefire on land, sea and air based on Security Council Resolution 338 (October 22, 1973).

Redeployment of forces along lines specified on the attached maps:

Israeli forces were positioned west of line (A), with the exception of Quneitra west of line (A-1).

Return of the land east of Line (A) to Syrian administration and the return of civilians to it.

Establishing a buffer zone between lines A and B, in which a United Nations monitoring force (UNDOF) will separate the two sides.

Syrian forces are positioned east of line (B).

Equal allocation of arms and forces on both sides of the separation lines.

The agreement also stipulated: Exchange of prisoners and wounded within 24 hours of signing, and the return of all remaining prisoners immediately after the conclusion of the Joint Military Committee’s work.

Return the bodies of the dead within ten days of signing.

Consider the agreement a step towards a just and lasting peace, not a final peace treaty.

The two parties agreed on an additional protocol regulating the work of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF), which included approximately 1,200 troops from non-permanent member states of the Security Council.

The force was given freedom of movement and used only defensive individual weapons.

The appendix also included: Establishing a 10-kilometer-deep troop reduction zone on both sides of the separation line, and reducing heavy weapons to an additional 20 kilometers.

Granting the United States, the right to conduct reconnaissance flights to verify the implementation of the agreement.

The security arrangements included an 80-kilometer area, divided into three strips:

• A 10-kilometer-wide buffer zone, covering 235 square kilometers, is under UN control, with the exception of the city of Quneitra, which was symbolically returned to Syria.
• A 10-kilometer-deep demilitarized zone, in which the Syrian army is allowed to retain 350 tanks and 3,000 soldiers with light weapons.
• A wider, demilitarized zone 10-20 kilometers deep, allowing 650 tanks and 4,500 troops with small arms and limited-range artillery.

During the Assad-Kissinger negotiations between May 20 and 28, 1974, the talks nearly collapsed due to Washington’s demand to include a clause prohibiting any activities of paramilitary forces, a reference to Palestinian factions.

Assad refused to officially commit to this, but in practice, he prevented the activities of these factions in the Golan Heights. The presence of UNDOF, in cooperation with the Syrian army, contributed to stabilizing this situation and preventing any breaches, keeping the Golan front calm for decades.

The disengagement agreement consisted of a public document, a detailed map, a protocol defining the role of the United Nations, and secret messages exchanged between Washington and the two sides regarding the details of troop deployment.

Under this agreement, Israel withdrew from territories it occupied during the October War, including a strip around the city of Quneitra, while most of the Golan Heights, which covers an area of ​​1,860 square kilometers (1,260 square kilometers of which have been occupied since 1967), remained under Israeli control.