Palestinian village Khirbet Susiya under imminent threat of demolition and expulsion

[Jefferson23]

May 7, 2015

Susiya reflects Israeli authorities’ policy throughout Area C of West Bank


Khirbet Susiya, village under threat of demolition. Photo: Ann Pack, Activestills.org, 15 June 2012

On 4 May 2015, Justice Noam Solberg of Israel’s High Court of Justice (HCJ) rejected a petition for an interim order that would freeze the implementation of demolition orders issued against homes in the village of Khirbet Susiya, which lies in the southern Hebron hills in the West Bank. The village residents requested the order as part of their petition to the court against the Civil Administration’s decision to reject the master plan they had drawn up for the village. In the petition, Att. Qamar Mashraki from Israeli NGO Rabbis for Human Rights argued on behalf of the residents that their plan had been rejected for improper considerations, and that this constituted a double standard in planning and blatant discrimination against the Palestinian population.

The meaning of Justice Solberg’s decision is that at any moment, the Civil Administration can demolish all homes in the village. The residents, some 250-350 people depending on the season, will be left homeless in harsh desert conditions. They will be effectively expelled from their land in an act that is not only cruel but also illegal.

Israeli settlers in the area have already taken over almost 300 hectares of the villagers’ land. Past experience indicates that if the Israeli authorities succeed in expelling the villagers from Khirbet Susiya, either the settlers will directly take over the land or the authorities will take control of it an allocate it to settlers.

The state’s treatment of Khirbet Susiya and its residents illustrates its systemic use of planning laws to prevent Palestinians in Area C, which is under full Israeli control, from construction and development that meet their needs: most Palestinians in the area live in villages where the Israeli authorities have refused to draw up master plans and connect them to water and power supplies, under various pretexts. With no other choice, the residents eventually build homes without permits and subsequently live under constant threat of demolition and expulsion. This policy is intended to serve the goal, explicitly declared by Israeli officials in the past, of taking over land in the southern Hebron hills in order to formally annex it to Israel in a permanent-status agreement with the Palestinians, and annex it de facto until such a time.

http://www.btselem.org/press_releases/20150507_khirbet_susiya_facing_expulsion

[guillaumeb]

1. So this land is in the West Bank. Part of Palestine. Correct?

And the Israeli government controls every aspect of life. Someone, perhaps one of the apologists for Israel, remind me about Israel being a democracy that respects human rights.

Remind me also, oh apologists for Israel, how the Israelis government, and by extension the Israeli people, really want a two state solution. Where exactly will this Palestinian state be when Israel is done stealing the land?

[Jefferson23]

2. It's hard to believe most don't know, I think of them more as enablers than apologists.

The support for a viable two state solution plummets when you see polls that speak
to the land that will be necessary to make that a reality.

snip*A large majority of Jewish Israeli citizens (74 percent) oppose the establishment of a Palestinian state along the pre-1967 borders, according to a new poll conducted by the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, a right-wing think tank. The organization also found that 76 percent oppose a Palestinian state if it means dividing Jerusalem.

The poll surveyed 505 Jewish Israelis, dividing them along their personal political orientation. Three hundred and four identified themselves as right wing, 125 as centrists and 68 as left wing. It is interesting to note that of those who consider themselves “centrists,” 63 percent oppose a Palestinian state along the pre-1967 border, compared with only 19 percent who identify as left.

When it comes to Jerusalem, a not surprising majority of both rightists and centrists oppose conceding East Jerusalem to a future Palestinian state. However, while 51.5 percent of leftists support it, nearly 40 percent of them oppose it. This means that even those who consider themselves left wing in Israel are on the fence about giving up East Jerusalem. From this we can conclude that most Jewish Israelis oppose a two-state solution, and even those on the left are not quite sure about it. It also illustrates that the notion of what is considered “left wing” in Israel has shifted to the right along with the rest of the public.

http://972mag.com/most-israelis-oppose-palestinian-state-new-poll-shows/97833/

[guillaumeb]

3. I believe that the survey, and the opinions,

reflect a rewriting of history by the Israeli government that has been going on since the 1967 war started. People read the same lies over and over and eventually a certain percentage of people believe them. It certainly works in the US.

The problem arises when the fantasy history collides with reality.

Interesting also that 304 out of 505 identify as right wing. That in itself does not help prospects for peace.

[Scootaloo]

5. "More enablers than apologists"

That's the fucking truth. They remind me of the people who will tell a battered woman "Oh no, he really loves you, just be a better person for him, it'll all work out."

[Little Tich]

4. This is how apartheid is used to force a one-state solution.

Is there actually anyone that still believes that the current government of Israel isn’t pursuing the one-state solution?

[Israeli]

6. Answer to your question ....

If there is they have their heads buried deep into the sand Little Tich......

Meet the MK: Eli Ben-Dahan

Date : 02/15/2013

http://www.jpost.com/Features/In-Thespotlight/Meet-the-MK-Eli-Ben-Dahan

What is your position on talks with the Palestinian Authority and a possible Palestinian state?

We oppose a Palestinian state completely. We’re 20 years on and there’s no give and take. There’s just give from our side while we’ve never gotten anything from them. Frankly, it seems that the maximum we can offer them is less than the minimum they are willing to accept.

Former prime ministers Ehud Barak and Ehud Olmert both made very generous offers and yet they were still rejected by the Palestinians, so it seems like we’re simply playing chess with ourselves.

As our party advocates, we need to take full control of Area C [of the West Bank] and impose Israeli law there.

I don’t think the international community will have any serious influence [on Israel] if we do this. When we annexed east Jerusalem and the Golan [Heights] the US protested and halted support for a while, but eventually they understood that we’re a sovereign state and in the end there was no alternative but for us to maintain control over the Golan. The rest of Judea and Samaria will remain under Palestinian civil and security control but there won’t be a permanent solution or a sovereign state.

[Little Tich]

7. His major qualification seems to be that he should never be allowed to have a position

in the Ministry of Defense.

All the ministers of Bayit Yehudi seem to genuinely believe that non-Jews are sub-human. Even if the Palestinians didn't vote for Ben-Dahan they will sure experience the effects of his rule.

The more I learn about this government, the more I doubt its ability to lead Israel.