On March 14, 2010, the Israeli Occupation Forces handed the Palestinian residents of Rachel’s Tomb area north of Bethlehem city issued an amendment to a previously issued military order number 14/03/T which was issued on February 9, 2003 and states the confiscation of 26.2 dunums of Palestinian lands to build the illegal Israeli Segregation Wall in Rachel’s Tomb area. which was issued on February 9, 2003 and states the confiscation of 26.2 dunums of Palestinian lands to build the illegal Israeli Segregation Wall in Rachel’s Tomb area.
Photo 1 & Photo 2: The amendment of the MIlitary Order Number 14/03/T
The Segregation Wall around Rachel’s Tomb Area
In December 2003, the Israeli Occupation Forces started to build the Segregation Wall in Rachel’s Tomb area (the northern section of the Segregation Wall in Bethlehem Governorate) which stretches through 1.7 km long. The lands surrounding the Tomb were confiscated under “security pretexts” to establish a parameter of a 12 meters concrete partition blocks around the Tomb.
On February 3, 2005, the Israeli Supreme Court rejected petitions submitted by 18 Palestinian families from Bethlehem and Beit Jala cities against the construction of a bypass parallel to the path of the Segregation Wall at Bethlehem’s northern entrance stretching through the way from Gilo 300 Terminal to Rachel’s Tomb.
By August 2006, Israel had finally sealed off the Rachel’s Tomb area from Bethlehem Governorate with a large iron gate. See map 1 & Photos
Map 1: the Segregation Wall in Rachel’s Tomb Area
The Rachel’s Tomb area before and after the construction of the Segregation Wall
The Rachel Tomb Area today
The Segregation Wall which totally isolates the Rachel’s Tomb area did not fully satisfy the Jewish colonial desires towards the annexation of all of the Palestinian lands to its territories; rather on February 21, 2010, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that two holy sites located in the West Bank, the Rachel’s Tomb north of Bethlehem and the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron Governortae (also known to the Israelis as the Tomb of the Patriarchs) will be included on a list of Israeli national heritage sites to be restored.
As a result of building the Segregation Wall around the Rachel’s Tomb area, 60 people were enclosed inside this wall and completely segregated from center of Life in Bethlehem city.
Bethlehem Governorate has been severely affected by building the Segregation Wall where 159,793 dunums (23.5%) from the total area of Bethlehem Governorate will be totally isolated by the Wall; most of which are fertile agriculture lands and their owners have to issue a special permit form the “Israeli Civil Administration” in order to be able to access their isolated lands; most often their requests are rejected. See Table 1:
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Table 1: Status of the Israeli Segregation Wall in Bethlehem Governorate
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Wall Status
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Length-km
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Existing Sections
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25.4
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Planned Sections
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43.6
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Under Construction Sections
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5.8
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Total Wall Length
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74.8
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Source: ARIJ-GIS Database 2010
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To Conclude
Israel is steadily moving towards imposing facts on the ground and unilaterally shaping the borders of their colonial state by building the illegal Segregation Wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, expanding Illegal Israeli settlements, confiscating Palestinian land and demolishing Palestinian houses and targeting east Jerusalem, aiming to create an atmosphere of voluntary displacement of Palestinians from their own lands.
The construction of the Wall in the OPT clearly violates international law, rules and conventions such as:
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Article 147&53 of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 indicates that: ‘Extensive destruction and appropriation of property not justified by military necessity and carried out unlawfully and wantonly is a grave breach of the Convention.‘
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Article 23 of the Hague Convention of 1907 also provides: ‘In addition to the prohibitions provided by special Conventions, it is especially forbidden to destroy or seize the enemy’s property, unless such destruction or seizure be imperatively demanded by the necessities of war;’
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Article XXXI of the 1995 Oslo agreement provides ‘Neither side shall initiate or take any step that will change the status of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip pending the outcome of the permanent status negotiations.’
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Under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted and proclaimed by General Assembly resolution 217 A (III) of, December 10, 1948, Article 17 reads: ‘No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.’ In otherwords, it bans Israel from destroying or confiscating the property of the Palestinians at any case.
Prepared by
The Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem
The Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem
