Freeheeler 2nd International_Edition Saison_19_20

we tried to get in the groove and get a feel for the snow. It was a bit crunchy with ice chunk briquets breaking
up the otherwise smooth and nicely-pitched slope. With this off-piste run opening up down lower, Jakub and
I swooped long-arc fast telemarks down to the lift.
Up until 1967, Mt Hermon’s heights were used tactically by Syria to shell Israeli military targets and villages.
After Israel’s decisive 1967 Six-Day War against Syria, Egypt, and Jordan, it seized and now controls the western
two-thirds of the region. The Golan Heights however, are Internationally recognised as Syrian territory
occupied by Israel. The United States, by way of President Donald Trump’s March 2019 proclamation, is the
first and only country to recognise Israeli sovereignty over this effectively annexed region. The ski area, as
well as military stations on Mt Hermon, were destroyed by Syria’s surprise attack during 1973’s Yom Kippur
War. Israel regained its position however, after a battle that saw approximately 15,000 casualties. By 1974 the
chairlifts had been rebuilt in this northernmost corner of the Golan Heights, with Israel having control of the
southern side of Mt Hermon, while Syria claims its northern slopes.
On top again, Jakub and I skied and then started traversing west along the big bowl that made up the southern
side of the ski area. Cold powder covered the north facing off-piste slopes, as we continued, finally lin-
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