You can reach a Syrian military headquarters on the Golan Heights during your tour of Israel.
This building was Syria’s headquarters in Quneitra’s old city. Quneitra, in Arabic, is a bridge, possibly named for the junctions between Syria and the Golan Heights.
The Soviet Union constructed the structure in 1960, taking two years to complete. It was built in Quneitra, a Syrian town owned by Syria. It is impressive in size and made of reinforced concrete. Symmetrical lines characterize the construction. Additionally, there is a section with stone cladding (Jerusalem-style stones).
According to some articles, the building and its contents were considered relatively luxurious and included red velvet armchairs, televisions, and more. The structure contains about a hundred rooms, some with holes in the wall due to the bombings, and is used by curious travelers, organized groups, and soldiers who come to ceremonies or even preparation.
In the final days of the Six-Day War, June 10, 1967, Between Israel, Syria, Jordan, and Egypt, Syrians abandoned this place. They left the building with all its contents, including weapons, furniture, secret materials, and maps.
Eli Cohen Story
This place is of great significance to Israel’s army. Then, other than the Syrian soldiers, who was here?
The Israeli spy Eli Cohen, who pretended to be a citizen of Syria, has developed very good relations with the government and the military in Syria. Such a good relationship that he has become the chief adviser to the Syrian Minister of Defense.
He visited the site at least twice, as every time he wanted to walk around the Golan Heights, he had to get permission from the main office in that building.
He convinced the chief to plant trees around the building so that there would be more shade on hot days. This community helped the IDF easily find this place.
Back in 1965, Syrian Intelligence suspected there was a spy among them. They found suspicious radio waves coming out of the apartment of Israeli spy Eli Cohen in Damascus. When they entered the apartment, they found he was in the middle of a broadcast to Israel. On May 18 of the same year, he was put to death by hanging in Damascus. His body never returned for burial in Israel.
This was to be his last assignment in Syria before his return to his family. Some researchers believe that Eli’s Cohen information played a major role in the success of the Six-Day War.
As of 2013, a memorial trail has been running along the sites visited by Eli Cohen in Golan Heights. The 75km trail comprises eight stations, and it takes up to 4 hours to follow all of them. At each place, you can listen to audio on Eli Cohen’s experience in this place and enjoy a sculpture of it. The first place is at the Sea of Galilee southern “Hamat Gader” (“El Hama”) at the Spa resort parking lot. You may notice a rock that explains this station. Near the station sign, you could see a destroyed building, that building was a dining room inside a Syrian army base, where Eli was eating with Syrian officers and building solid relationships with them, near the hot springs. The last station beneath Mount Avital has a sculpture of Nadia, the wife of Eli Cohen, and their three children, awaiting his return.
Main travel information
This building is located alongside Kibbutz Merom Golan and Mount Avital on the Golan Heights.
Arrival options
| Bus lines | You should reach the town of Katsrin on the Golan Heights and take a bus line from there: 14, 54, 59 or 87. |
| Car | It can be easily reached by car. Write in the Israeli navigation application «Waze» in Hebrew «מפקדה הכוחות הסורים» and it will be easy. In case you do not have a navigation application,. Head north towards the Galilean Sea. Get to Highway 98. Go north to Ein-Zivan Junctin. On the Ein zivan junction continue to drive steight . On your left you can see the Avital Mountain Reserve. Continue 200 meters and look to the right. You will see the large building that stands there awaiting your visit. |
| Jeep 4×4 and Razers | That’s the best way to benefit from that area. The views around this site are magnificent and you can visit other ancient buildings around and the best view from the top of Bental Mountain. Recommended: Drive around by jeep by Merom Golan Jeeps. Contact us for specific rates. |
Accessibility
It cannot be used for wheelchairs and is not suitable for children.
Weather/clothing
The Golan Heights are considered cold due to its altitude. Even on a summertime tour, take a light jacket with you.
Difficulty
Easy, this visit is not expected to take more than 30 minutes. However, you must be aware that there are holes in the walls, roof and floor, and you must take care and walk carefully. Avoid falling into obstacles in your surroundings.
Site explaining
At the entrance of the building, you can easily feel the drama when you look at all the broken windows and broken stairs that have been hit by an Israeli airplane bomb.
When you walk through the rooms, you see various graffiti paintings, some objects, remains of shower and toilet and an interesting part: remains of torture facilities.
Strolling around the rooms makes you feel like a time traveler. The building is amazingly well preserved from 1962.
The main entrance has a wide staircase with a square concrete roof above for entertaining visitors at their entrance. In addition, there are two small and less impressive side entrances.
Upon your arrival here, carefully climb the stairs to the top of the building. You will notice a beautiful view of Syria and Lebanon and a hole at the center of the roof due to the bombing.
Climbing these steps you reach the main hall with a spiral staircase facing you. To the right and left, there are long corridors with dozens of rooms whose windows overlook the eucalyptus trees outside and the new town of Quneitra, a few kilometers away, in the interior of Syria. There is a second floor with another spiral staircase, but that staircase is in poor condition as a result of the bombing.
There is a shelter and a way to get there. There are interesting tools that are supposedly designed to torture the prisoners who arrived here.
Some say that this building was originally used as a hospital, but other articles say that it was supposed to be the army headquarters from the start.
Paintball activity is also taking place around the building.
Sites in the area
Nearby you will find small square buildings that served as living quarters and bedding for Syrian soldiers who served in the building. You could see apple orchards everywhere. They are the famous “Beresheet” apple from the kibbutz Merom Golan.
– Hermon Mountain, Israel’s tallest mountain with more than 2,030 elevations above sea level. You can go on a guided tour and discover this history of the mountains and enjoy skiing activities during the winter.
Their website is : https://www.skihermon.co.il/en/
Hungry?
You can eat breakfast or lunch at Kibbutz Merom Golan. Breakfast can be organized inside the communal dining room of Kibutz, so you can enjoy dining with the local kibbutz community at reasonable rates.
For Lunch we recommend to eat at a meat restaurant “Habokrim” restaurant in Kibbutz Merom Golan inside the Kibbutz Hotel “Merom Golan Volcano Resort”. https://bokrim.rest.co.il/
Would you like to have some coffee and feel like in Europe?
Café Annan on Bental Mountain is the place for you. Its high location at an altitude of about 1,164 metres makes it Israel’s highest restaurant!
Would you like some beer? Visit Golan Brewhouse in Katzerin, and taste local beers with their special flavors due to the minerals in the Golan springs. They also have excellent steak. http://www.brewhouse-golan.co.il/
Extra information
The best experience around is to take the razor ride of Kibutz «Merom Golan»and combine the tour with a driving around.
Contact us if you would like more information.
Final words
Israel signed a peace agreement with Egypt (1979) and with Jordan (1994).
In 2020 and a few months ago, the Israeli government signed a new peace normalization agreement with the UAE and Bahrain.
It is my hope that these normalization agreements will lead to peace with our neighbors, Lebanon and Syria. Until then, the closing we can have in Syria is walking around this building and looking at it from the roof.
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