United Nations Security Council Resolution 350

Resolution 350 grew out of the October 1973 Yom Kippur War, during which Israel and Syria fought on the Golan Heights.[5][2] Security Council Resolution 338 of 22 October 1973 called for an end to the fighting, but the Israel–Syria sector remained unstable, with tensions increasing from March 1974.[5][2]

US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger undertook an intensive diplomatic effort, traveling between Jerusalem and Damascus during May 1974 to bridge the positions of the two parties.[6] Negotiations had begun in February and March, and Kissinger's shuttle diplomacy followed about six months of continuing exchanges of fire.[7][5] The resulting Agreement on Disengagement stated: "This agreement is not a peace agreement. It is a step toward a just and durable peace on the basis of Security Council Resolution 338 dated October 22, 1973."[8]

The Security Council adopted Resolution 350 on 31 May 1974 at its 1774th meeting; its official symbol is S/RES/350(1974).[9] Israel and Syria signed the disengagement agreement on the same day.[2] The recorded vote was 13 in favor, none against, and no abstentions, while China and Iraq did not participate.[3][4] The resolution was jointly sponsored by the United States and the Soviet Union.[4]

In its preamble, the Council stated that it had considered the Secretary-General's report in documents S/11302 and Add.1 and heard his statement at the 1773rd meeting. It welcomed the disengagement agreement as having been negotiated in implementation of Resolution 338 (1973) and took note of the report, its annexes, and the Secretary-General's statement.[1] The Council then decided to establish UNDOF immediately under its authority, asked the Secretary-General to take the necessary steps and keep the Council informed, and authorized the force initially for six months, subject to renewal by a further resolution.[1]

The Agreement on Disengagement was signed in Geneva by senior Israeli and Syrian military officers.[7][6] It was designed to separate the two armies and reduce the risk that concentrated forces or tactical friction would produce renewed war.[10] The agreement established an Area of Separation between Line A to the west and Line B to the east, in which only UNDOF was permitted to maintain a military presence.[5][8]

On either side of the separation zone, the agreement created equally deep Areas of Limitation with restrictions on forces and armaments.[5] In the 10-kilometer strip from the buffer zone, each side was limited to 6,000 troops, 75 tanks, and 36 artillery pieces of up to 122 mm caliber. In the 20-kilometer strips beyond it, the limits were 450 tanks and 162 guns with maximum ranges of 20 kilometers. Surface-to-air missiles were prohibited in all limitation strips extending up to 25 kilometers in depth.[5]

The agreement explicitly stated that it was not a peace agreement, but a step toward a just and durable peace based on Resolution 338.[8]

UNDOF was established in June 1974 in accordance with Resolution 350 and the disengagement agreement.[10] Its personnel were to be selected by the Secretary-General in consultation with the parties from UN member states that were not permanent members of the Security Council.[8] The agreement's protocol described the force as numbering "about 1,200," while a separate INSS account says it was limited to 1,250 soldiers.[8][10] UNDOF was assisted by military observers from the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization, founded in 1948.[10]

The force was deployed at positions in the Area of Separation and at logistics bases at Ziouani on the Israeli side and al-Faouar on the Syrian side.[10] Its duties included maintaining observation positions, patrolling, inspecting the Areas of Limitation, and relaying messages between Israel and Syria.[10] Under the agreement's protocol, UNDOF was to inspect implementation, report to both parties at least every fifteen days and upon either party's request, and mark the relevant lines on the ground. It was to remain mobile, enjoy freedom of movement and communication, and carry personal weapons for use only in self-defense.[8]

UNDOF also assisted the International Committee of the Red Cross with humanitarian tasks at the Quneitra crossing, including the passage of brides and students and exports of apples from Druze villages in the Golan Heights to Syria.[10] No military forces other than UNDOF were permitted within the buffer area.[11]

Since UNDOF's establishment, its mandate has been renewed by the Security Council every six months.[10][2] The force continued to carry out its functions with the cooperation of the parties, although its operating conditions and deployments changed substantially during the Syrian civil war.[10][2]

The disengagement arrangement remained the framework for separating Israeli and Syrian forces and supervising the ceasefire and limitation areas.[5][8] It did not purport to settle the broader political relationship: the agreement expressly defined itself as a step toward peace rather than a peace agreement.[8] The continuing cycle of mandate renewals has therefore preserved UNDOF as an enduring part of the Golan security arrangement.

Accounts differ modestly on UNDOF's originally contemplated strength. The agreement's protocol specified "about 1,200" personnel, while a later INSS account described the force as limited to 1,250 soldiers.[8][10] Encyclopedia.com likewise gives a figure of 1,250.[4] The difference may reflect the protocol's approximate wording and later summaries of the force's authorized or initial strength, but the cited sources do not explain it definitively.