Demonstration Against the Route of the Wall in Bil'in

These pictures were taken in the West Bank

March 23-24

The small town of Bil'in is situated on the edge of the western edge of the West Bank in the center of the country. On the other side of the green line, in Israel, is the growing city of Modi'in. Between the village and the city is a settlement called "Modi'in Elit". While its legality, as well as the legality of other settlements is disputed, most of it was built on public land.

One part of Modi'in Elit, in the neighborhood of Matityahu East, was actually built on land for which Bil'in has legal ownership. While the developer's plans were never approved by the goverment, he was also never prevented from building there by security forces. The article at the bottom of this post explains a recent ruling by the Supreme Court of Israel, which hints to to the fact that this development may need to be razed, despite the fact that families have already moved in.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian residents of Bil'in are fighting another fight. The route of the security fence cuts the village off from over half of its olive groves, on which its people have sustained themselves for centuries. The wall is situated much farther into the West Bank than the settlement, for the purpose of allowing for future Israel settlement. This comes at the expense of Bil'in, a village fighting for its right to retain its legally held land.

Bil'in is also at the forefront of the non-violent movement. Its weekly demonstrations encounter little more violence than a little pushing and shoving. I attended their demonstration, along with a number of Israelis and other internationals, to see what exactly is going on here.

-----------------------------------------

From Ha'Aretz (Israeli Newspaper):

March 22, 2006

30 days to explain illegal building

by Yuval Yoaz

The High Court of Justice yesterday gave the state 30 days to explain why houses built illegally in the Matityahu East neighborhood of the Modi'in Ilit settlement should not be demolished.

A three-justice panel also ordered the state to explain why a criminal investigation should not be opened against those responsible for issuing the illegal building permits.

The order nisi was issued against Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz, GOC Central Command Yair Naveh, West Bank district police chief Yisrael Yitzhak, the Civil Administration, the planning commission for the territories and local council of Modi'in Ilit. It was issued in response to a petition by Peace Now for a halt to construction on lands belonging to the villagers of Bil'in to the east.

The court also upheld an interim injunction barring continued construction both on houses built without permits and on those with illegal permits. In addition, it rejected the state's proposal that tenants whose houses have been completed be allowed to occupy them.

At a hearing a week ago, the justices suggested the construction companies reimburse tenants who had purchased apartments in the project. Some 750 housing units are under various stages of construction, out of about 3,000 units planned.

"The Matityahu East affair is the most extensive violation of planning laws in the West Bank that has been discovered to date," Peace Now's lawyer, Michael Sfard, said. "At Amona, we asked that nine houses be demolished. Here, we're talking about close to 500. This will be a test of whether the State of Israel is capable of dealing with its offenders."