On Friday, 21 November, upwards of 500 people—Palestinians, Israelis and Internationals—marched toward the gate of the Wall in the West Bank Palestinian village of Jayyous, and within a few minutes the gate was open.
On
Friday, 21 November, upwards of 500 people—Palestinians, Israelis and
Internationals—marched toward the gate of the Wall in the West Bank Palestinian
village of Jayyous, and within a few minutes the gate was open and in pieces.
The
villagers were ecstatic at what had been accomplished, waving pieces of the
gate in the air with smiles ear-to-ear.
Yet,
when Israeli soldiers arrived on the scene, they responded by shooting live and
rubber bullets at villagers and firing teargas canisters into the air. Five
villagers were injured.
After the
violence subsided, the soldiers took control of the village, imposed a curfew,
and declared it a closed military zone.
Approximately
one hour later, the soldiers detained five internationals as they attempted to
leave the village in a car along with a number of Palestinians.
“This was a clear message to internationals that they will pay
for being present at these demonstrations” said one of the internationals. “The
Israeli authorities do not want us here so that they can do what they want with
the Palestinians.”
Jayyous
was the first village to engage in regular nonviolent protests against the Wall
six years ago this month. The situation was so bad for Jayyous that the
municipality actually managed to get their case heard at the Israeli High
Court.
After
years of debate and legal charades, the Court finally ruled on 4 November that
the Wall should be moved back by two kilometers.
While sounding
like a positive development, the decision will actually make things worse for
this small farming community.
Prior to the decision, Jayyous villagers were able to cross the Wall through a
gate twice per day to access their olive and citrus groves on the other side of
the Wall. Now, the gate will permanently be shut, leaving plenty of space for
the expansion of Zufit settlement and the development of an Israeli industrial
zone.
The High
Court decision is notably in direct contradiction with the International Court
of Justice’s advisory opinion of 2004, which states that the Wall is illegal in
international law, that farmers should be compensated, and that all settlers
should be repatriated to the other side of the Green Line.
In all, 5,585
dunam of land will be confiscated from Jayyous once construction of the new
Wall is complete, leaving the majority of Jayyous’ farmers stripped of their
livelihoods and unemployed.
Given
these circumstances, it is certain that the villagers of Jayyous will continue
to protest against the Wall, despite the recent High Court decision.
And, as
in other villages adversely affected by the Wall, internationals will continue
to maintain their presence, despite the arrests and intimidations.
|
Occupation Watch 
