On March 3, 2012, officers of the Israeli Civil Administration affiliated to the Israeli Occupation Army handed out Al-Izzariyya local council a military order to extend the confiscation of 386 dunums of lands of Al-Izzariyya, Abu Dis and At-Tur communities in east Jerusalem to construct the “Fabric of Life” road. The Israeli confiscation order which holds no. 35/07/T was first issued on October 9, 2007 and stated the confiscation of 386.3 dunums of lands of the three aforementioned communities with the aim of constructing the proposed road.
The issuance of the military confiscation order (35/07/T) came in parallel with the issuance of another Israeli military order issued on October 4, 2007, holds No. (19/07/T) and confiscates a total of 1128.8 dunums of Palestinian lands from Abu Dis, Arab Al-Sawahreh , An-Nabi Mousa and Al-Khan Al-Ahmar communities east of the city of Jerusalem for building another section of the ‘fabric of life’ road, east of Ma’ale Adumim settlement. ) and confiscates a total of 1128.8 dunums of Palestinian lands from Abu Dis, Arab Al-Sawahreh , An-Nabi Mousa and Al-Khan Al-Ahmar communities east of the city of Jerusalem for building another section of the ‘fabric of life’ road, east of Ma’ale Adumim settlement. came in parallel with the issuance of another Israeli military order issued on October 4, 2007, holds No. and confiscates a total of 1128.8 dunums of Palestinian lands from Abu Dis, Arab Al-Sawahreh , An-Nabi Mousa and Al-Khan Al-Ahmar communities east of the city of Jerusalem for building another section of the ‘fabric of life’ road, east of Ma’ale Adumim settlement.
An analysis conducted by the Geo-Informatics Department at the Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem (ARIJ) to the previously issued orders showed that the proposed routes would be as follows:
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Military Order No. (35/07/T): This road sectionwill extend in length for 4.6 Km starting from Al Container checkpoint northeast of Bethlehem city, passing through Abu Dis and Al- Izzariyya communities, and then continues to reach At-Tur and Az- Za’ayem communities. The road will then pass through an underground tunnel that leads to the towns of ‘Anata and Hizma, to finally connect with another under construction road that runs parallel to the Israeli military base located east of ‘Anata town and then towards Ramallah city.: This road sectionwill extend in length for 4.6 Km starting from Al Container checkpoint northeast of Bethlehem city, passing through Abu Dis and Al- Izzariyya communities, and then continues to reach At-Tur and Az- Za’ayem communities. The road will then pass through an underground tunnel that leads to the towns of ‘Anata and Hizma, to finally connect with another under construction road that runs parallel to the Israeli military base located east of ‘Anata town and then towards Ramallah city.
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Military Order (19/07/T): This road sectionwill extend from Al-Sawahreh Al-Sharqiya village towards the northeast, where it will run in parallel with the Israeli Segregation Wall path that is planned to encircle the Ma’aleh Adumim Settlement bloc from the east to finally connect with the Israeli bypass road No. 1 which leads to Jericho city. ): This road sectionwill extend from Al-Sawahreh Al-Sharqiya village towards the northeast, where it will run in parallel with the Israeli Segregation Wall path that is planned to encircle the Ma’aleh Adumim Settlement bloc from the east to finally connect with the Israeli bypass road No. 1 which leads to Jericho city.
It is worth mentioning that the two roads will be constructed to divert Palestinian traffic away from the all Israeli bypass roads which have access to Jerusalem. This in turn will reinforce the Israeli apartheid system to prohibit Palestinian access to their lands and deny them rights to access Jerusalem city; In addition, the planned roads will force Palestinians to use routes totally separated from those of the Israelis so that at the end Israel could implement its colonial plans in the area, exemplified in the building of the E1 neighborhood, west of Ma’ale Adumim, where 3,900 housing units are set to be built.
Intentional Misleading & Manipulation
The Israeli proposed plan to build the “Fabric of Life” road is no longer than an Israeli manipulation plan to deceive the international community by claiming that Israel is interested in facilitating the lives of Palestinians of the occupied West Bank, while on the ground, the construction of the road will end up with dramatic consequences on the Status of East Jerusalem as the capital of the future Palestinian State as follows:
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Depriving Palestinians from using Bypass road No. 1 that runs west of Ma’aleh Adumim settlement.
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Depriving Jerusalemites from their lands and Properties and their Rights in Jerusalem city.
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Linking the illegal Israeli settlement bloc of Ma’aleh Adumim with the city of Jerusalem.
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Cutting the city of Jerusalem (including its eastern part) off from the rest of the West Bank Governorates.
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Eliminating the status of East Jerusalem as the capital of the future Palestinian State.
Legal & International Status
The Israeli colonial projects that are taking place in the Palestinian Territory aim to achieve the Israeli political leadership desire to eliminate any opportunity to reach a just and lasting peace agreement with the Palestinians based on the “two state solution”.
The Israeli confiscation of private Palestinian lands under what is called “security pretexts” constitutes a grave breach of the international law rules and Human conventions, some of which are listed below:
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Article XXXI, Oslo II, 1995: ‘Neither side shall take any step that will change the status of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
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Article 53 & 147 of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 indicated 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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Moreover Art. 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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Also 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.’ Which means it bans Israel from destroying or confiscating the property of the Palestinians at any case.
[1] E1 Project: Israeli colonial plan that was originally passed in 1997 but was put on hold over international pressure. It includes plans to build 3900 housing units and other recreational and business facilities on an area of 12,000 dunums. The plan aims at physically connect Ma’ale Adumim settlement with the eastern side of Israeli defined municipal boundary of Jerusalem and creating a barrier that will prevent the Palestinian development east of the city but more than that it will literally deprive Palestinians from geographical contiguity between the southern and northern parts of the West Bank territory.
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