Violation: an Israeli colonists captures an abandoned police station and turns it into a cafe.
Location: Wadi al Qilt to the south of Jericho city.
Date: April 2, 2013.
Details:
The Israeli policies in the Jordan Valley area has been designed to serve colonial expansion by giving the colonists all the needed help and support to capture Palestinian properties and use them as their own; it is usually done by claiming that the lands are ‘state properties’ or ‘absentees properties’. At the same time, the Israelis have been prohibiting the Palestinians from using the natural resources, especially water, in the area.
On April 2, 2013, an Israeli colonists captured an abandoned Jordanian Police station before turning it into a touristic cafe which he called ‘the House of Tea’. The Police station is located nearby MIzpe Yeriho colony. The colonists changed the shape of the building and turned into a cafe serving foreign and Israeli tourists.
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The Police station was captured soon after the 1967 war; it was, with the surrounding lands, immediately classified as ‘state properties’ where Palestinian access is prohibited. However, Palestinian access have been prohibited while Israeli colonists were free to use it the way they wish for which is evident in the most recent violation.
Several Palestinian palm farms were captured on various pretexts while Israeli farms in the same area were allowed to expand and flourish which embodied the Israeli discriminatory policies.
Wadi al Qilt is one of the most beautiful touristic sites in the West Bank; the valley is formed of 45-km-long rock walls located between the cities of Jerusalem and Jericho. The road formed by the walls used to be the main road connecting the cities.
It all started when the Roman King, Herod, built a water channel to supply his winter mansion with water; the remains of the channel are still visible.
A fascinating water spring is located in the middle of the road while its surroundings are covered with green grass and flowers. The Israeli occupation defiled the area with numerous military camps and watchtowers; at the same time, the Israelis promote for it as an ‘Israeli’ archeological site. Israeli investors are encouraged to invest in the area whereas Palestinians are not even allowed to access it.
