In 1964 Syria had started building a canal to divert two of the main tributaries of the Jordan River away from Israel. Using a combination of artillery and air strikes, Israel brought work on the canal to a halt. “While the border disputes between Syria and ourselves were of great significance, the matter of water diversion was a stark issue of life and death,” wrote Sharon. Israel values the territories it occupied in 1967, which granted it control of the Jordan’s headwaters, as much for their water supply as for any military advantage. The Palestinians who live in the West Bank are allotted
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