RedCeltic
15th January 2004, 18:35
The Wall: Land Theft and Forced Expulsion
1) The Wall is not being built on, or in most cases near
the 1967 Green Line, but rather cuts deep into the
West Bank, expanding Israel's theft of Palestinian
land and resources.
2) When completed, the Wall will de facto annex some 50%
of the West Bank, isolating communities into cantons,
enclaves and "military zones".
3) The Palestinian population in the West Bank and Gaza
Strip, including almost 1.5 million refugees, will be
living on only 12% of historic Palestine.
4) Nearly 16% of Palestinians in the West Bank will be
"outside" the Wall in the de facto annexed areas by
Israel and due to unbearable living conditions —the
loss of land, markets, movement and livelihoods—faced
with expulsion. This includes over 200,000 residents
of East Jerusalem, who will be totally isolated from
the rest of the West Bank.
5) 98 % of the settler population will be included in the
de facto annexed areas.
6) The Wall is not a new "idea" - since 1994 the Gaza
Strip has been surrounded by a barrier which cuts off
the residents from the rest of the world; in the past
year Israel has been expanding this barrier as well as
building a new "Iron Wall".
The Wall's Location and Costs
The Wall's total length will be some 730 km.
Currently, the Wall is being built in the districts of
Qalqiliya, Tulkarem, Jenin, Ramallah, Jerusalem, and
Bethlehem by some 250 bulldozers while measurements in
preparation for the Wall are taking place all over the
West Bank.
The Wall costs some $3.4 billion, approximately $4.7
million per kilometer1.
The Multiple Structures of the Wall
The concrete Wall, now present in Qalqiliya, parts of
Tulkarem and East Jerusalem is 8 meters high – twice
the height of the Berlin Wall - with armed watchtowers
and a "buffer zone" 30-100 meters wide for electric
fences, trenches, cameras, sensors, and military
patrol.
In other places, the Wall consists of layers of razor
wire, military patrol roads, sand paths to trace
footprints, ditches, surveillance cameras and in the
middle a three meters high electric fence.
The Wall's "buffer zone" paves the way for large-scale
demolitions and the expulsion of nearby residents as
in many places the Wall is located just meters away
from homes, shops, and schools.
In addition to being located by the Wall, some
communities in the "first phase" are further
closed-off by an "Isolation Barrier", ensuring they
are surrounded on all sides.
The Israeli military has created "gates" in the Wall;
however these do not provide any guarantee for farmers
to access their land but instead strengthen Israel's
strangling system of permits and checkpoints where
Palestinians are beaten, detained, shot at and
humiliated.
Creating Ghettos
The Wall in all of its forms encircles regions with
the highest Palestinian population density into three
ghettos in the West Bank while Israeli Jewish-only
settlements and "by-pass" roads further divide these
areas. The isolation from basic services in these
areas along with the loss of land, markets, and
resources, equates to the inability for communities to
sustain themselves adequately and with dignity.
Northern Ghetto:
The northwestern part from Jenin to Qalqiliya (the
"first phase2" of 145 km) is "complete" while
continuing south until Ramallah. In the northeast, the
Wall extends from Jenin to Ramallah, merging with the
other portion of the Wall to form a ghetto in the
north.
Within the "first phase", 16 villages west of the Wall
have been de facto annexed to Israel and some 50
villages are separated from their lands.
Also in the "first phase", Israel has confiscated 36
groundwater wells and at least another 14 wells are
threatened for demolition in the Wall's "buffer zone".
South of Qalqiliya the Wall extends up to 22.5 km east
– right into the heart of the West Bank - in order to
annex the large settlements of Ariel and Qedumim.
The lands between the Wall and the Green Line have
been declared by Israel as a “seam zone” whereby all
residents and land owners must obtain a permit to
remain in their homes and on their lands. This
translates into the de facto annexation of 3% of the
West Bank in the “first phase” alone.
Jerusalem:
The Wall in Jerusalem encircles the holy city3 and the
ring of settler colonies around it, furthering the
completing the isolation of Jerusalem from the West
Bank.
At the same time, the Wall rips through villages and
neighborhoods, separating families, cutting social and
economic ties, and ghettoizing areas deemed by Israel
not belonging to Jerusalem.
This portion is nearing completion in the north
towards Ramallah and is under construction in various
parts of the east and the south towards Bethlehem.
The Jerusalem district will, in total, lose 90% of its
land when the Wall is completed.
Southern Ghetto:
In the southern West Bank the Wall encircles Bethlehem
and Hebron by continuing south of East Jerusalem in
both the east and west.
In Bethlehem and Hebron concrete walls are coming
right up to main holy sites, Rachel's Tomb and
Abraham's Mosque respectively; Rachel's Tomb is
already inaccessible to Palestinians.
Gaza Strip:
The Gaza Strip, with a population of some 1.3 million
people in 365 km2 is one of the most densely populated
places on the globe; being completely surrounded, for
years now, by walls and razor wire it is an obvious
prison for all of its residents.
During this past year, extensive destruction to land
and homes has been taking place in Rafah in order to
clear way for a 3 km long Iron Wall and its "military
zone" along the Egyptian border. The Iron Wall, eight
meters high, is equipped with three electronic doors
from which Israeli tanks and home demolition
bulldozers enter the camp to carry out incursions and
massacres.
In total, over 2000 dunums of land have been razed,
hundreds of homes demolished, and 35 Palestinians
killed in the various areas close to the Wall
construction4.
The Israeli Position
Likud: "Israel will greatly accelerate the
construction of the security fence. Today we can
already see it taking shape," stated Israeli Prime
Minister Ariel Sharon (at the Herzliya Conference, Dec
18th, 2003).
Labor: Last May, former Prime Minister E. Barak stated
"There is no explanation as to why Israel cannot build
a bigger, ten-times longer fence [than the one in the
Gaza Strip], and close off Israel and the settlement
blocs [in the West Bank]," (Ha'aretz, May 15, 2002).
Meretz (considered far-left): "Too little too late but
still in the right direction." (Avshalom Villan,
Member of the Knesset, in response to the cabinet's
decision to build the Wall in the northern West Bank,
April 15, 2002).
"Those who try and say that the fence doesn't
represent a political line don't know what they're
talking about…" stated the head of the Jordan Valley
"settlers' council", David Levy. "Everyone is playing
this double game, and it's convenient for everybody.
That is why I am in favor of the fence, obviously it
will put us inside [towards Israel]." (Yedioth
Ahronoth, May 31, 2003).
"I haven't sat with the prime minister recently," says
Ron Nahman, the mayor of the settlement Ariel, "but
the map of the fence, the sketch of which you see
here, is the same map I saw during every visit Arik
[Ariel Sharon] made here since 1978." (Yedioth
Ahronoth, May 23, 2003).
Timeline
In November 2000 E. Barak approved the first project
to build a "barrier".
Construction of the Wall, including land confiscation
and the uprooting of trees, began in June 2002 west of
Jenin.
In September 2002, the first public map of the
Wall-consisting of only a portion of the northern part
-was made available to the public.
In September 2002, the steering committee approved the
inclusion of Rachel's Tomb within the borders of the
Wall.
In mid-March 2003 the Israeli government announced to
alter the Wall's path to include Ariel and Immanuel
settlements as a part of the settlers' council
proposal.
The following week, Sharon declared the expansion of
the Wall by building a wall within and along the
entire Jordan Valley, bringing the settlements in this
area under total Israeli control.
In April 2003, Israel announced the completion of 27
km of the Wall.
On July 2003, the Israeli government allotted an
additional $171 million for the construction of the
Wall.
On the July 2003 the Israeli defense Ministry
announced the completion of the "first phase" of the
Wall, a total of 145 km.
On October 2nd, 2003 Israel issued military orders
declaring all lands west of the Wall’s "first phase"
as a "seam zone", forcing a permit system that
institutionalizes the de facto annexation of these
lands.
In December 2003, Israel declared that in 2004 520 km
of the planned 728 km would be completed with the
entire "project" finished in 2005.
Footnotes:
1 The West Bank WALL: Humanitarian Status Report, UN
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance
(OCHA), July 2003.
2 For more information see the Anti-Apartheid Wall
Campaign Fact Sheet: The Wall's "First Phase".
3 For more information see the Anti-Apartheid Wall
Campaign Fact Sheet: Jerusalem.
4 Figures from al-Mezan Center for Human Rights, Gaza.
1) The Wall is not being built on, or in most cases near
the 1967 Green Line, but rather cuts deep into the
West Bank, expanding Israel's theft of Palestinian
land and resources.
2) When completed, the Wall will de facto annex some 50%
of the West Bank, isolating communities into cantons,
enclaves and "military zones".
3) The Palestinian population in the West Bank and Gaza
Strip, including almost 1.5 million refugees, will be
living on only 12% of historic Palestine.
4) Nearly 16% of Palestinians in the West Bank will be
"outside" the Wall in the de facto annexed areas by
Israel and due to unbearable living conditions —the
loss of land, markets, movement and livelihoods—faced
with expulsion. This includes over 200,000 residents
of East Jerusalem, who will be totally isolated from
the rest of the West Bank.
5) 98 % of the settler population will be included in the
de facto annexed areas.
6) The Wall is not a new "idea" - since 1994 the Gaza
Strip has been surrounded by a barrier which cuts off
the residents from the rest of the world; in the past
year Israel has been expanding this barrier as well as
building a new "Iron Wall".
The Wall's Location and Costs
The Wall's total length will be some 730 km.
Currently, the Wall is being built in the districts of
Qalqiliya, Tulkarem, Jenin, Ramallah, Jerusalem, and
Bethlehem by some 250 bulldozers while measurements in
preparation for the Wall are taking place all over the
West Bank.
The Wall costs some $3.4 billion, approximately $4.7
million per kilometer1.
The Multiple Structures of the Wall
The concrete Wall, now present in Qalqiliya, parts of
Tulkarem and East Jerusalem is 8 meters high – twice
the height of the Berlin Wall - with armed watchtowers
and a "buffer zone" 30-100 meters wide for electric
fences, trenches, cameras, sensors, and military
patrol.
In other places, the Wall consists of layers of razor
wire, military patrol roads, sand paths to trace
footprints, ditches, surveillance cameras and in the
middle a three meters high electric fence.
The Wall's "buffer zone" paves the way for large-scale
demolitions and the expulsion of nearby residents as
in many places the Wall is located just meters away
from homes, shops, and schools.
In addition to being located by the Wall, some
communities in the "first phase" are further
closed-off by an "Isolation Barrier", ensuring they
are surrounded on all sides.
The Israeli military has created "gates" in the Wall;
however these do not provide any guarantee for farmers
to access their land but instead strengthen Israel's
strangling system of permits and checkpoints where
Palestinians are beaten, detained, shot at and
humiliated.
Creating Ghettos
The Wall in all of its forms encircles regions with
the highest Palestinian population density into three
ghettos in the West Bank while Israeli Jewish-only
settlements and "by-pass" roads further divide these
areas. The isolation from basic services in these
areas along with the loss of land, markets, and
resources, equates to the inability for communities to
sustain themselves adequately and with dignity.
Northern Ghetto:
The northwestern part from Jenin to Qalqiliya (the
"first phase2" of 145 km) is "complete" while
continuing south until Ramallah. In the northeast, the
Wall extends from Jenin to Ramallah, merging with the
other portion of the Wall to form a ghetto in the
north.
Within the "first phase", 16 villages west of the Wall
have been de facto annexed to Israel and some 50
villages are separated from their lands.
Also in the "first phase", Israel has confiscated 36
groundwater wells and at least another 14 wells are
threatened for demolition in the Wall's "buffer zone".
South of Qalqiliya the Wall extends up to 22.5 km east
– right into the heart of the West Bank - in order to
annex the large settlements of Ariel and Qedumim.
The lands between the Wall and the Green Line have
been declared by Israel as a “seam zone” whereby all
residents and land owners must obtain a permit to
remain in their homes and on their lands. This
translates into the de facto annexation of 3% of the
West Bank in the “first phase” alone.
Jerusalem:
The Wall in Jerusalem encircles the holy city3 and the
ring of settler colonies around it, furthering the
completing the isolation of Jerusalem from the West
Bank.
At the same time, the Wall rips through villages and
neighborhoods, separating families, cutting social and
economic ties, and ghettoizing areas deemed by Israel
not belonging to Jerusalem.
This portion is nearing completion in the north
towards Ramallah and is under construction in various
parts of the east and the south towards Bethlehem.
The Jerusalem district will, in total, lose 90% of its
land when the Wall is completed.
Southern Ghetto:
In the southern West Bank the Wall encircles Bethlehem
and Hebron by continuing south of East Jerusalem in
both the east and west.
In Bethlehem and Hebron concrete walls are coming
right up to main holy sites, Rachel's Tomb and
Abraham's Mosque respectively; Rachel's Tomb is
already inaccessible to Palestinians.
Gaza Strip:
The Gaza Strip, with a population of some 1.3 million
people in 365 km2 is one of the most densely populated
places on the globe; being completely surrounded, for
years now, by walls and razor wire it is an obvious
prison for all of its residents.
During this past year, extensive destruction to land
and homes has been taking place in Rafah in order to
clear way for a 3 km long Iron Wall and its "military
zone" along the Egyptian border. The Iron Wall, eight
meters high, is equipped with three electronic doors
from which Israeli tanks and home demolition
bulldozers enter the camp to carry out incursions and
massacres.
In total, over 2000 dunums of land have been razed,
hundreds of homes demolished, and 35 Palestinians
killed in the various areas close to the Wall
construction4.
The Israeli Position
Likud: "Israel will greatly accelerate the
construction of the security fence. Today we can
already see it taking shape," stated Israeli Prime
Minister Ariel Sharon (at the Herzliya Conference, Dec
18th, 2003).
Labor: Last May, former Prime Minister E. Barak stated
"There is no explanation as to why Israel cannot build
a bigger, ten-times longer fence [than the one in the
Gaza Strip], and close off Israel and the settlement
blocs [in the West Bank]," (Ha'aretz, May 15, 2002).
Meretz (considered far-left): "Too little too late but
still in the right direction." (Avshalom Villan,
Member of the Knesset, in response to the cabinet's
decision to build the Wall in the northern West Bank,
April 15, 2002).
"Those who try and say that the fence doesn't
represent a political line don't know what they're
talking about…" stated the head of the Jordan Valley
"settlers' council", David Levy. "Everyone is playing
this double game, and it's convenient for everybody.
That is why I am in favor of the fence, obviously it
will put us inside [towards Israel]." (Yedioth
Ahronoth, May 31, 2003).
"I haven't sat with the prime minister recently," says
Ron Nahman, the mayor of the settlement Ariel, "but
the map of the fence, the sketch of which you see
here, is the same map I saw during every visit Arik
[Ariel Sharon] made here since 1978." (Yedioth
Ahronoth, May 23, 2003).
Timeline
In November 2000 E. Barak approved the first project
to build a "barrier".
Construction of the Wall, including land confiscation
and the uprooting of trees, began in June 2002 west of
Jenin.
In September 2002, the first public map of the
Wall-consisting of only a portion of the northern part
-was made available to the public.
In September 2002, the steering committee approved the
inclusion of Rachel's Tomb within the borders of the
Wall.
In mid-March 2003 the Israeli government announced to
alter the Wall's path to include Ariel and Immanuel
settlements as a part of the settlers' council
proposal.
The following week, Sharon declared the expansion of
the Wall by building a wall within and along the
entire Jordan Valley, bringing the settlements in this
area under total Israeli control.
In April 2003, Israel announced the completion of 27
km of the Wall.
On July 2003, the Israeli government allotted an
additional $171 million for the construction of the
Wall.
On the July 2003 the Israeli defense Ministry
announced the completion of the "first phase" of the
Wall, a total of 145 km.
On October 2nd, 2003 Israel issued military orders
declaring all lands west of the Wall’s "first phase"
as a "seam zone", forcing a permit system that
institutionalizes the de facto annexation of these
lands.
In December 2003, Israel declared that in 2004 520 km
of the planned 728 km would be completed with the
entire "project" finished in 2005.
Footnotes:
1 The West Bank WALL: Humanitarian Status Report, UN
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance
(OCHA), July 2003.
2 For more information see the Anti-Apartheid Wall
Campaign Fact Sheet: The Wall's "First Phase".
3 For more information see the Anti-Apartheid Wall
Campaign Fact Sheet: Jerusalem.
4 Figures from al-Mezan Center for Human Rights, Gaza.