Israeli Settlements

Israeli settlements , or Israeli settlements ) denote settlement communities which were established by the State of Israel on the territories conquered during the Six Day War in West Bank in East Jerusalem , the Gaza Strip , the Golan Heights and the Sinai.

Following the Camp David Accords in 1982, the Sinai settlements were evacuated in 2005, all settlements in the Gaza Strip were dismantled and their inhabitants displaced by the Israeli army. According to sources, in 2007, between 144 and 149 settlements with a total population ranging from 450 000 to 475 000 inhabitants (including East Jerusalem) ^, and certain tax liens or social in order to encourage the installation of settlers .

Since 1967, regardless of the party in power, the Jewish state implements continuous settlements in the West Bank, the movement grew in 1974 with the establishment of Gush Emunim (Block of faith), followed by the National Religious Party and Likud , then in 2000, with the government of Ariel Sharon .

The terms "settlement" or "Jewish town" are used by the Israeli government to designate these colonies , but does not match a name recognized by international law . Seen by the UN as a violation of the ^Fourth Geneva Convention , the West Bank settlements and East Jerusalem are "illegal and an obstacle to peace and economic and social development" of the Palestinian territories .

The Jewish state says no peace treaty has established the legal status of these territories , that Judea is the birthplace of Judaism , exclusively populated by Jews or people who used the Law of Return but some 25,000 Palestinians would work regularly .

History

The Zionist movement claimed, with the British mandatory authorities and with the international community, "a Jewish national homeland in Palestine from the Zionist Congress in 1905 , and specifically state on all of mandatory Palestine from the Zionist Congress held at the Biltmore Hotel in New York in May 1942.

In 1947 , the Zionist movement, however, accepts a majority share in two states: one for the Arabs of Palestine and the other for the Jews of Palestine (47% of mandate Palestine to the latter, divided into three separate regions), area of Jerusalem obtaining a special international status. Arab leaders reject the creation of these two States and pursue an armed struggle on the ground.

In May 1948 , the Declaration of Independence of the State of Israel on the portion of Mandatory Palestine named for a Jewish state by the Partition Plan for Palestine in 1947 , Arab armies attacked the young state in order to destroy it. At the end of the first Arab-Israeli conflict , the armistice agreements of 1949 Arab-Israeli freeze the fronts of the conflict (leaving 73% of mandate Palestine to the Israelis) and bring me to any treaty of peace on final borders recognized by the countries of the region.

In 1956 , international pressure to bring the belligerents the Suez Canal crisis to the same green line and does not lead to agreement on final borders.

After the Six Day War of 1967 , Israel retains the territories conquered from its Arab neighbors:

• the Sinai Peninsula and Gaza Strip are taken to Egypt ;
• the West Bank and East Jerusalem are caught in Transjordan ;
• the Golan Heights was taken to Syria.

The period 1967 - 1977

The Israeli government Labor is considering the annexation of some of these territories, to establish buffer zones and ensure the security of the Jewish state. Other areas are intended to serve as bargaining chips in a future peace with neighboring Arab states.

The Left in government is creating Jewish settlements (also referred to as colonies ) in the territories occupied in 1968. It targets areas with low Palestinian populations, which are intended to be annexed by the Allon Plan. These settlements, however, remain limited. Is also emerging from the first half of the 1970s , illegal settlements (from the Israeli perspective), often organized by religious nationalist movement (but not necessarily by the National Religious Party itself). This policy of illegal settlements will remain prevalent until 2005 in the Greater Israel activists, the authorities often face passive.

Some colonies (required by Labor or religious nationalists) have been established on sites of former Jewish communities destroyed in 1929 ( Hebron ) and 1948 ( Gush Etzion ).

The period 1977 - 2004

Settlement near Jerusalem in July 2005

In 1977, the Israeli right (the Likud ) came first to power in alliance with the religious nationalists. She wants to eventually annex the entire West Bank and the entire Gaza Strip , on behalf of the unity of Eretz Israel (the land of Israel within its biblical borders).

The right is therefore launching a much more ambitious program: 50 000 settlers in 1987, before the first intifada , 260,000 settlers in 1993, before the Oslo Accords , 440 000 in 2003, after the second Intifada . Areas heavily populated by Palestinians are also affected, not just empty boxes. Palestinian lands are largely confiscated to build settlements, roads, military posts, or simply to avoid Arab construction .

Two major types of colonies appear:

• large settlement blocs: populous, usually fairly close to the borders of 1949 (renamed the "1967 borders" or "green line"). They are populated by commuters in Tel Aviv or Jerusalem, generally quite right, but rarely extremists. This is true of secular settlements of Ariel and Ma'ale Adummim settlements or ultra-Orthodox of Betar Illit and Modi'in Illit . Some consist only of a few caravans on a hilltop, with populations of about ten people.

In these colonies, there are the Jewish neighborhoods of East Jerusalem. After 1967, Israel has indeed reunited Jerusalem , against the wishes of the inhabitants of the Arab side. The annexed portion passes over 6 sq km (within its limits Jordanian), 72 km , with the annexation of Arab villages and undeveloped areas. Jewish neighborhoods were built in non-populated areas. They count in 2005 approximately 200,000 Jewish residents. A colony like Gilo is thus part of the municipality of Jerusalem.

Despite this desire for territorial expansion, but Israel signed a peace treaty with Egypt in 1979 (colonies in Sinai were dismantled - see Yamit ), and a peace treaty with Jordan in 1994 (some territories on the eastern bank of the Jordan returned to Jordanian sovereignty). The borders with these two countries are no longer contested. Similarly, although there is no peace treaty with Lebanon , Israel recognizes the Lebanese border (dispute over the small area known as the " Shebaa Farms ").

The period 2005 - 2006

Location map in 2006

Since the 1967 war, the Zionist left (which created the first colonies) said it believed that the colonies should remain limited in number, and placed near the former border before the 1967 war. Their fear is that colonies too deeply implanted in the Palestinian areas:

• make peace impossible, and condemn Israel's ongoing war;
• increasingly isolate Israel internationally;
• force to annex the territories on behalf of the Palestinian unity of Eretz Israel, and condemns the Jewish majority in Israel (Arabs would become the majority in Israel + Palestinian territories in 2005).

The objective of the Left is not to abandon all settlements or all of the annexations, but to annex the largest settlement of border areas, there where only little or no Palestinian Arabs.

For years the right has condemned these positions, and wished attach all Palestinian territories occupied after the 1967 war. In 2002-2003, a dramatic turnaround, Ariel Sharon , the Israeli prime minister and leader of the Likud (nationalist right) rallied factual analysis of the left and announced that population growth and violence rendered Arabic infeasible in practice the "Greater Israel" (including the Palestinian territories). Israel had to give up "some settlements," to withdraw from Arab populated areas.

In 2003, Ariel Sharon announced a full withdrawal from the Gaza Strip , withdrawal can be made in summer 2005. Twenty-five settlements have been dismantled (including 4 in the West Bank), and from 8000 to 9000 settlers had to leave. Trauma among the settlers, many from the current religious-Zionist , was very strong. But there was relatively little violence. The Likud has erupted between supporters ( Kadima ) and opponents ( Likud ) withdrawal. According to an interview with Meron Rapoport for the Israeli daily Haaretz , Weisglass, adviser to Ariel Sharon, said that "Sharon decided to give up Gaza, he never considered a" national interest "to save the West Bank settlements, and, more importantly, prevent any negotiated agreement with the Palestinians. "What we have done is to freeze the negotiation process. And when you freeze the negotiation process, you prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state and you prevent discussion on the refugee issue. (...) The disengagement has the right amount of formaldehyde necessary so there is no process of negotiation with the Palestinians " .

In 2006, the successor to Ariel Sharon, Ehud Olmert (former leader of Likud to Kadima past), has decided to dismantle some illegal settlements (built without government authorization for the UN as well, all settlements are illegal). On ¹ February 2006 , the settlement of Amona has been evacuated and destroyed, with smooth non-negligible (250 minor injuries, 2 serious). The tension among the settlers (mainly religious Zionists) is very high. Thus, the Board of Rabbis of the West Bank issued a statement on ¹ February 2006: "The government has declared a war without thank you cons Eretz Israel and those that are faithful. We need to stop by all means this persecution of Jews in Judea - Samaria (West Bank) or there will be a war, "he warned. ^{Political Debate}

A number of themes are discussed from both sides:

• The Palestinians argue that the settlements policy is an effort to capture territory or even sabotage a peace treaty that would include Palestinian sovereignty, and that the settlements themselves are stealing land belonging to Palestinians.
• The UN , various European governments, a minority of Israel, and many NGOs colonies look so very similar, arguing that they violate international law by making life difficult for Palestinians in the sectors concerned.
• The religious Zionists claim that the entire land of Israel rightfully belongs to the Jews, for historical and religious reasons (" Land given by God "). Building settlements is to obey the commands of God, is a dismantling rebellion against God. ^{Revelation of Al-Jazeera}
  

  The Palestine documents on peace negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians, made public by Al-Jazeera from January 23, 2011 reveal the following:

  • Palestinian negotiators have agreed to waive their claims for the "Jewish Quarter and part of the Armenian Quarter" located inside the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem.

  • The Palestinians agreed that Israel would annex all Jewish neighborhoods in East Jerusalem, with the exception of Har Homa.

  • Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert , had proposed in August 2008 that Israel annex 6.8% of the West Bank , including four major settlement blocs of Gush Etzion, in addition to the Jewish neighborhoods of East Jerusalem. In part-cons Palestinians would have received 5.5% of Israeli territory. He also reportedly suggested that the passage between Gaza and the West Bank is under the joint control of Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

  • Minute discussion show that the Palestinians have expressed their willingness to cede territory in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, including major Israeli settlement blocs in exchange for Israeli territory north of the Jordan Valley , south of Hebron and east of the Gaza Strip, and to recognize Israeli sovereignty over Jewish neighborhoods of Jerusalem intramural, East Talpiot, Gilo, Givat Ze'ev to the north of the Israeli capital.

  • A document dated January 2010, the report contains a statement by Saeb Erekat, the U.S. special envoy to the Middle East, George Mitchell , whose terms would be that "the Palestinians have agreed to give Israel the" Great Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the largest in the history of the Jewish people. "and that" the remains of the old city will be under Palestinian authority, we can discuss the Temple Mount , there are creative ways to address this issue, eg committee that the authority Legal position

    In law, the settlements are illegal. The International Court of Justice confirmed the illegality of these settlements, which violate art. 49.6 of the Fourth Geneva Convention: "The Occupying Power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies. "

    In addition, art. 8.2, b, VIII of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court defines "transfer, directly or indirectly, by the Occupying Power of parts of its civilian population into the territory it occupies" as a crime war. Israel has not ratified the Statute.

    Without distinguishing those that were new or restored (Hebron and Gush Etzion), the Security Council of the United Nations and the General Assembly has repeatedly condemned Israel for the construction and expansion of these settlements.

    Despite this and some internal convictions of these settlements, Israel says that the construction would be legal under international law because Israel denies that there is occupation. It should be noted that the Israeli Supreme Court ruled in June 2005 that neither the West Bank or Gaza were part of the national territory.

    span class = "mw-headline" id = "Point_de_vue_de_la_communaut.C3.A9_internationale"> View from the international community

    The Resolution 242 (1967) UN asks Israel to withdraw from "occupied territories" (French official version) or "from Occupied Territories" (official English version). Furthermore, Article 35 of the UN Charter prohibits any change of borders by force. Under this resolution, the occupation itself is illegal settlement is in any case, whatever the nature of the occupation.

    While fixing the boundaries was not made by the UN in 1949 , but by the cease-fire emerged from the war, the UN therefore considers these lines as constituting the boundaries of fact, subject amending agreements between the parties.

    On the colonies themselves, the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 prohibits the establishment of new populations in conquered territory after a conflict (Art. 49: "The Occupying Power may undertake

  . Israel deplores these ads .

Israeli Viewpoint

Mandatory Palestine was intended in its entirety by a mandate from the League in 1922 to establish a Jewish national homeland. "

The partition plan for Palestine of 1947 was superseded by the Arab refusal. There is no internal boundaries set within the old Palestine Mandate.

Since there is no peace treaty governing Israel's borders on the West Bank, Gaza and the Golan Heights, Israel proclaims so that the armistice lines (known as the green line ) of 1949 have no binding legal status.

The conclusion of these three points (a legacy of the mandate, Arab refusal sharing, no international treaty defining the border) is that Israel can develop in its own interest or annex all or part (as governments) territories occupied in 1967 . ^{Views of the Arab countries and the Palestinian Authority}

Originally, the views of Arab countries is quite similar to the Israeli point of view: there is no legal and legitimate internal border to the former Mandatory Palestine, in its borders of 1922. This refusal is interpreted by cons in a way aimed at the destruction of the State of Israel.

Beginning in 1977 , Egypt endorses the UN position, followed by the majority of Arab countries and the Palestinian Authority in the 1990s. This acceptance of the 1949 borders does not necessarily mean the end of the state of war, given the occupation of the Israeli West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Consequences of colonization

Separation Barrier in East Jerusalem.

The construction of the large settlement blocs in the West Bank now divided into several zones and does not provide the Palestinians territorial contiguity. Presented by the Jewish state as the fundamental points of the country's security, settlement expansion, building the separation barrier - sometimes several kilometers inside the Green Line - the roads protected for settlers to link Israel and the dams and crossings military heavily impede freedom of movement for Palestinians in the West Bank, the International Labour Office of the UN estimates that "80% of West Bank settlements are established wholly or partly on private Palestinian land " .

In the West Bank as in the Golan, the use by colonies of the great majority of natural resources (land, water ...) is to the detriment of the public, business and indigenous agriculture, and constitutes an obstacle to their economic and social development .

The economic and social life of the Syrian population in the Golan Heights has always been based on agriculture but the confiscation by Israel of certain lands, the uprooting of trees and destruction of seedlings and the privileges granted to Jews access with water and obtaining building permits undermines the balance of the Syrian society still present, in addition, the water quota allocated to Israeli settlers, ten times that given to the Syrians, and that pricing policy by increasing the amount requested, help reduce equality of opportunity and free competition .

Despite the dismantling of settlements in the Gaza Strip, the UN still considers the territory under Israeli occupation, the Council for Human Rights holds Israel responsible for breaches of human rights and international humanitarian law .

Notes and References

See also

Israel

• Israel (Bible) , Philistines , Kingdom of Israel , Kingdom of Judah , Kingdom of Jerusalem * Israel , Jerusalem , Israel Defense Forces , History of Israel , Zionism , History of Zionism , Chronological History of Zionism ,
• Likud , Labor Party , Kadima , Shas , Shinui , Yachad , Peace Now , Agudat Israel , Moledet.
• Theodor Herzl , pogroms , Holocaust
• David Ben Gurion , Shimon Peres , Yitzhak Rabin , Menachem Begin , Golda Meir , Ariel Sharon
• Jewish diaspora , Birobidzhan

Arab-Israeli conflict and "Israel-Palestine"

• Partition plan for Palestine , the Arab-Israeli conflict , Israeli-Palestinian Conflict , Palestinian refugees , Jewish refugees from Arab countries , Arab League
• Arab-Israeli war of 1948 , the Suez Crisis of 1956 Six Day War of 1967, Resolution 242 (1967) , Yom Kippur War of 1973 Lebanon War of 1982, the intifada 2
• Camp David Accords , the Oslo Accords , Camp David II Summit , the Taba summit , the Roadmap for Peace , disengagement plan from Gaza Strip - 2005
• Israeli separation barrier , Elon Peace Plan

Palestine (region, terminology, general history)

• Palestine , Palestine (disambiguation) , Mandatory Palestine , History of Palestine ,
• Canaan , Judea , Ottoman Empire , Samaria , Gaza , West Bank , Transjordan
• Sykes-Picot , Balfour Declaration , Partition Plan for Palestine

Palestine (Arabic)

• Palestine (State claimed) , Palestinian Territories , East Jerusalem
• Palestinian people , Palestinian Culture , Politics Palestinian , Palestinian Diaspora , Black September
• PLO , Palestinian Authority , Fatah , Hamas , Islamic Jihad , PFLP
• Yasser Arafat , Mahmoud Abbas

• Israel portal
• Portal on the Arab-Israeli conflict
• Palestine portal

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