Mount Hermon

Mount Hermon (Arabic Jabal ash Shaykh, ”mountain of the chief”), mountain in the Anti-Lebanon Range, on the Syrian-Lebanese border. The highest of its three summits is 2,814 m (9,232 ft) above sea level, and is the highest point on the east coast of the Mediterranean Sea. Mount Hermon is the source of the Jordan River. Noted for its majestic beauty, the mountain has been the inspiration for much Hebrew poetry. Remains of ancient temples, one probably dedicated to the Semitic deity Baal and several bearing Greek inscriptions, are on its slopes. Mount Hermon is believed by some to have been the site of the transfiguration of Jesus Christ, though this has traditionally been attributed to Mount Tabor. Since the 1967 Six-Day War between Israel and several Arab nations, 100 sq km (40 sq mi) of Mount Hermon's southern and western regions have been part of the Israeli-administered Golan Heights. Both Syria and Israel maintain significant military posts on Mount Hermon's slopes.