A/HRC/37/40 built on the lands and farms of the destroyed Syrian village of Jabab Almees, had been extended by the construction of an additional 23 farms and that 26 additional farms had been added to the settlement of Ain Zifan, built on the lands of the destroyed Syrian village of Ain al-Ziwan. 13. The Syrian Arab Republic mentioned that Israeli officials had made statements to the effect that the reinforcement of settlements was linked to the security of Israel and that the increase and expansion of the number of settlements, in particular in Katzrin, were among their priorities. 14. The Syrian Arab Republic underlined the discriminatory practices and restrictions imposed by Israel on Syrian inhabitants of the occupied Syrian Golan. It indicated that those practices threaten the existence of the Syrian population. For example, in the area of construction, Syrians face disproportionately high taxes when submitting requests for utility services. 15. According to the Syrian Arab Republic, Israel persists in violating the rights to housing and to property of Syrians in the occupied Syrian Golan. It stated as an example, that, in November 2017, Israel had demolished the private house of a Syrian citizen in Bakaata village. 16. The Syrian Arab Republic emphasized the violation of the sovereignty of Syrians over their natural resources and the violation of the rights to development and to water by Israel as a result of its practices, such as confiscation and exploitation of natural resources in the occupied Syrian Golan. Regarding water resources, the Syrian Arab Republic stated that the largest water reserve — Lake Masaada — in the occupied Syrian Golan had been confiscated by Israel and a disproportionate amount of water resources had been allocated to its settlers, to the detriment of Syrian farmers. It indicated that Israeli practices in connection with water in the occupied Syrian Golan are carried out through the Israeli company Mekorot, which channels water to Israeli settlers in the south of the occupied Syrian Golan. As another example of Israeli exploitation of natural resources, the Syrian Arab Republic referred to oil exploration carried out by Israel on 10 sites in the occupied Syrian Golan, which has uncovered substantial oil reserves. 17. The Syrian Arab Republic referred to violations of economic and social rights, including the rights to freedom of movement, to property and to work, the confiscation by Israel of approximately 28 per cent of the agricultural lands in the occupied Syrian Golan and the Israeli plan to establish 750 farming estates by 2018. 18. The Syrian Arab Republic provided information on violations of cultural rights, and indicated that Israel had approved, for the first time, a tourist route in the West Bank and the occupied Syrian Golan. According to the Syrian Arab Republic, this is aimed at marking Arab and Islamic archaeological sites as Israeli heritage, as part of its policy of “judaization”. 19. The Syrian Arab Republic stated that Israel had deliberately violated the right to the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health of the Syrian population of the occupied Syrian Golan. It also stated that medical facilities in the occupied Syrian Golan were limited to first aid procedures, which forced the Syrian population to travel long distances in order to access adequate medical care, which could potentially endanger their life in emergency cases. It further stated that the Syrian residents of the occupied Syrian Golan also face discriminatory administrative practices in Israeli hospitals and are subjected to higher fees. 20. The Syrian Arab Republic stated that Israel has also violated the rights to education and to cultural heritage by imposing on Syrian children in the occupied Syrian Golan the Israeli education curriculum and the Hebrew language, thus preventing them from pursuing their education in Syrian universities. It added that those practices are aimed at restricting the freedom of movement of Syrian residents of the occupied Syrian Golan in violation of their civil rights. 21. The Syrian Arab Republic also stated that the practice by Israel of imposing Israeli identity cards on Syrian residents is in violation of their civil rights. 4