REPORT ON ISRAELI SETTLEMENT IN THE OCCUPIED TERRITORIES A Bimonthly Publication of the Foundation for Middle East Peac e Volum e 19 N umber 4 July-August 2009 A SETTLEMENT FREEZE . OR MORE OF THE SAME By Geoffrey Aronson and seal off East Jerusalem from its It is not surprising that when faced Palestinian hinterland. This project con - with Obama’s demand for a freeze, Never in the forty-two years that tinues despite widespread protest, Israel’s leaders are confident that the Israel has been occupying and settling including a recent, unprecedented public new president’s efforts will be neutral - the West Bank has an Israeli prime ceremony inaugurating a new national ized. Once again they are offering a minister taken seriously, let alone imple - police chief in the imposing police menu of policy compromises—a freeze mented, U.S. demands for a freeze of headquarters built in the eastern part of limited duration and scope, construc - settlement expansion. From the admin - of E-1. tion within existing settlement perime - istration of Lyndon Johnson, when the Prime Ministers Menachem Begin ters, no new settlements or special gov - United States first noted Israel’s viola - and Yitzhak Shamir trumpeted their ernment incentives, “natural growth” to tion of the Fourth Geneva Convention settlement achievements. Many others, accommodate growing settler families prohibiting the transfer of its civilian including Yitzhak Rabin, Ehud Barak, and their everyday needs, and expansion population to the occupied territories, to and Ehud Olmert “talked left and built only in settlement blocs. These artifices the June 4, 2009, declaration in Cairo right.” Whatever the method, Israel has have succeeded for almost five decades, by President Barack Obama rejecting never stopped building settlements and enabling Israel to settle close to half a “the legitimacy of continued Israeli set - related transportation and security infra - million of its citizens in the West Bank, tlements,” Washington’s opposition to structure for settlers. East Jerusalem, and Golan Heights in settlements has been variously, and Israel has built settlements without the face of virtually unanimous interna - always successfully, ignored, outlived, consideration for international opinion, tional opposition. This is an astonishing sidelined, or negotiated away. as did Defense Minister Ehud Barak achievement that reflects Israel’s deter - Israel has built settlements demon - when in June 2009 he authorized the mination, the chronic weakness of stratively, as a “Zionist response” to Civil Administration to submit a plan American and international diplomacy, Palestinian attacks or aggressive Ameri- for the construction of 300 housing and the failure of Palestinian protest and can diplomacy. The settlements in units in the unauthorized outpost of opposition. Hebron fit this category, as do the Givat Habrecha, near the settlement of “[U.S. special envoy George] “Baker settlements,” championed by Talmon east of the separation barrier. Mitchell knows the fraud exactly,” says a Secretary of State James Baker’s nemesis Palestinian opposition to settlements is former top official in Israel’s Defense Ariel Sharon almost twenty years ago. invariably ignored or dismissed. Ministry. When Israelis argued that In one of these, Revava, outside of Is this central feature of the occu- restricting the natural growth of settle - Nablus, a new neighborhood of 52 “vil - pation about to change? President ments is like the Holocaust, as they did las” is now under construction. Obama’s insistent call for a comprehen - at a May 26, 2009 meeting in London, Israel has built settlements quietly, sive end to continued settlement activity the Americans sitting opposite remained hoping not to excite strenuous interna - is unprecedented in its intensity. Despite unmoved. tional opposition. Until recently, this has the fact that until now all that he has While Israel’s leaders’ discomfort been the case with E-1, the vast area of asked of Israel is that it abide by the with Obama’s demand is genuine, like the West Bank east of Jerusalem where settlement commitments of George W. the incredulity of a child when a parent for many years Israel has been con - Bush’s road map, Obama’s demand rings finally says “enough!” they hope that structing elaborate infrastructure for all the louder in comparison to the more something will happen to “change the future settlement that would effectively forgiving U.S. policies of the Clinton divide the north and south West Bank and Bush administrations. SETTLEMENT , continued on page 6 TO OUR READERS FOUNDATION FOR MIDDLE EAST PEACE America’s commitment to Israel’s securi - notwithstanding its military might, and its ty has been a constant in U.S. foreign poli - security as a democratic, Jewish state will Merle Thorpe, Jr. cy. It is based on our national security erode. Founder interest in Arab-Israeli peace, the assump - Perpetuation of the status quo could also (1917–1994) tion of shared values, and the belief that eventually weaken the U.S. commitment to Israel would make peace if it felt truly Israel. This commitment reflects a sense of Philip C. Wilcox, Jr. secure. For years, the rationale for massive affinity based on the tragic history of the President American military aid to Israel and ensur - Jewish people and a belief that the Zionist Geoffrey Aronson ing its “qualitative edge” against all adver - state upholds liberal values of democracy, Director, Research and saries was “to give Israel the confidence to peace, equality and justice inscribed in Publications, Editor, Report on make peace.” Israel’s Declaration of Independence. Israeli Settlement in the Occupied America’s security support for Israel Israel’s occupation and settlement policies Territories helped move Egypt and Jordan to make defy these values and harm its security. If Nitzan Goldberger peace with Israel, and more recently, influ - these policies continue, Israel’s secular, lib - Waseem Mardini enced the promise of the other Arab eral elements will lose to the challenge of a Editorial Assistants League states to make peace if Israel liber - harsh, intolerant, militant Zionism that ates the Palestinians. The main threat to worships land and abandons enlightenment Jonathan van Melle Intern Israel’s security today, however, does not values. It is time for Israel and the U.S. to come from external forces—not even Iran, begin an honest discussion of more realistic TRUSTEES given Israeli and U.S. deterrent power—but policies that will make Israel truly secure, from Israel’s forty-year occupation and set - bring justice to the Palestinians, and pre - Landrum R. Bolling tlement of Palestinian territories which serve strong U.S.-Israeli relations. Calvin H. Cobb, Jr. now prevent a genuine two-state peace. James J. Cromwell Unless this project is reversed, Israel will Peter Gubser confront permanent strife and violence, Stephen Hartwell Richard S.T. Marsh —————— N —————— Richard W. Murphy Jean C. Newsom Gail Pressberg William B. Quandt Nicholas A. Veliotes The Foundation, a non- profit I.R.C. 501(c)(3) organization, supports peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians through mutual recognition and a negotiated division of historic Pales- tine. It publishes the bi- monthly Report on Israeli Settlement in the Occupied Territories . Copyright © 2009 Sign up to receive the Report by e-mail, to be notified of events in Washington, D.C., and more. Visit us at www.fmep.org. 2 O Report on Israeli Settlement July-August 2009 THE BLUE VELVET HILLS OF MY YOUTH HAVE BEEN DESTROYED Palestinians will never be able to undo the damage caused by these massive, illegal and politically motivated settlements By Raja Shehadeh At that time, Shamir dismissed the new settlement as “just a new neighbourhood.” The signing of the Oslo accords under I can remember the appearance of the hills around a Rabin government in 1993 led to the building of a road Ramallah in 1979, before any Jewish settlement came to be connecting Dolev to Beit Eil, running through private established there. In the spring of that year I walked north Palestinian land. This winding road passed through the beau - from Ramallah, where I live, to the nearby village of A’yn tiful wadi linking Ramallah to A’yn Qenya, causing extensive Qenya and up the pine-forested hill. A gazelle leapt ahead of destruction to the ancient rock formations and olive orchards me. When I reached the top I could see hills spread below me along the way. One rockface that I particularly miss used to like crumpled blue velvet, with the hamlets of Janiya and Deir be studded with cyclamens during the late winter months, Ammar huddled between its folds. On top of the highest hill coming down all the way to the spring—which was also in the distance stood the village of Ras Karkar with its cen - destroyed. turies-old citadel that dominated the area during Ottoman The Israeli policy of speeding up settlement construction times. I had been following the worrying developments of in the face of U.S. diplomatic pressure shows no sign of extensive settlement-building elsewhere in the West Bank and changing. Following the latest U.S. administration declaration wondered how long it would be before these hills came under that Israel must impose a complete freeze on settlements, the the merciless blades of the Israeli bulldozers. I didn’t have to country’s defence minister, Ehud Barak, declared last week the wait long. A year later the top of the hill was lopped off and decision to establish 300 housing units in Givat Habrecha the settlement of Dolev, then a cluster of red-tiled Swiss-style (Hebrew for hill of the blessing), one of the 12 outposts near chalets, was established. the settlement of Talmon in the Ramallah hills. A few days Now, more than 25 years later, Dolev has expanded and later, on 29 June, he announced a further expansion of the taken over the hills to its north for illegal settlement of Adam, where vineyards.