B’Tselem: Israel wants to have its cake and eat it too when it comes to Geneva Convention

17 December 2014

The village Um al-‘Kheir, in the Southern Hebron Hills, with the Carmel settlement in the background. Photo: Keren Manor, activestills.org, 10 March 2011.

Israeli authorities blatantly breach the Convention, yet benefit from membership in the club of nations that have signed it

The High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Convention held a conference today. In a press release issued after the conference, the contracting parties reaffirmed the obligation of all parties to uphold the fundamental principles of the laws of war, and called on Israel to respect the provisions of the Fourth Geneva Convention throughout the occupied territory, including East Jerusalem. The High Contracting Parties cited, inter alia, the obligation of the Occupying Power to administer the territory while taking into account the needs of the civilian population, and recalled the illegality of the settlements and the Separation Barrier. They also expressed deep concern over the closure Israel imposes on the Gaza Strip.

The High Contracting Parties also addressed the continued occupation and its impact on the local population. B’Tselem wishes to point out that the occupation, which is meant to be of a temporary nature, is nearing its fiftieth year, with no end in sight. Through all these years, Israel has managed the occupied territory in blatant disregard for the provisions of the Convention: collective punishment, expulsion, destruction of property, settlements, disregard for the needs of the local population and blatant discrimination are all inherent elements of Israel’s policy in the Occupied Territories.

Residents of an occupied territory do not choose the occupying power, and in most cases, it perceives them as enemies. For these reasons, and to prevent abuse of the power of the occupying force, the Fourth Geneva Convention has placed clear restrictions on the occupying power, including the obligation that it see to the interests of the residents living there and protect their welfare, safety and property. Israel has chosen to ignore these provisions and find justifications for breaching them, while enjoying the many advantages of belonging to the “club” of states that have signed the Convention. However, these justifications have been repeatedly rejected by international tribunals and legal scholars, and today, also by the Conference of High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Convention.

While the resolution passed by the conference is declarative and has no legal ramifications, it does, nevertheless, reflect the illegality of the ongoing occupation and its attendant human rights violations. It also reflects the baselessness of Israel’s claims of compliance with the Fourth Geneva Convention as well as Israel’s ever deteriorating international status as the violations persist.

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Natural pool, Wadi Qana. Photo: B’Tselem, 27 March 2014

Settlements

Wadi Qana – From Palestinian agricultural valley to settlements’ tourism park

Orange-picking at Wadi Qana. Photo: Iyad Mansur Wadi Qana is one of the tributaries of the Yarkon River. The central section of the wadi, to the east of Qalqiliyah, is in Area C and includes several springs. The land in the wadi in this area is owned by Palestinians, mainly by residents of the nearby village of Deir Istiya who use the land for farming and grazing. Over the course of many generations, and up to the 1990s, village families used to live in the wadi, relying on the springs for drinking water and for irrigating vegetable patches and citrus trees. To this day, residents of Deir Istiya and other neighboring villages go for a dip in the stream and relax on its banks. Between 1978 and 1986, several settlements were established on the hills overlooking both banks of the wadi: Immanuel and Karnei Shomron to the north; Yaqir and Nofim to the south. Later, the settlement of Karnei Shomron expanded to several nearby hills as well. Between 1998 and 2000, the settlement outposts of Alonei Shilo, El Matan, and Yair Farm were established by these settlements. The settlements and outposts discharged their wastewater into the wadi, spoiling the springs and harming the farmers’ water sources. Settlement of Karnei Shomron on slopes of Wadi Qana. Photo: Iyad Mansur In the 1990s, due to the pollution of their drinking water, the fifty Palestinian families who lived in the wadi at the time were obliged to leave it and move to Deir Istiya. The wadi’s springs were also harmed by water drillings undertaken by Israel since the 1970s. The drilling reduced the volume of water the springs discharged which, in turn, reduced the flow of the stream. The pollution and the reduced volume of water made it difficult to maintain irrigation-based farming in the area. Many of the farmers abandoned crops requiring irrigation and began planting trees in the wadi: mostly olive trees since these require very little irrigation, as well as a small number of deciduous fruit trees. In 1983, the Nature Reserves and National Parks Unit of the Civil Administration established the Nahal Qana Reserve, declaring a nature reserve on an area of roughly 1,400 hectares along the valley floor of Wadi Qana and its surrounding slopes. Until a few years ago, the declaration of the Nahal Qana Reserve did not affect the Palestinian landowners, who continued to use the spring water, farm their land in the wadi, and use the area for leisure. Despite the declaration of the nature reserve, the settlements continued to release wastewater into the wadi until 2006, when the recognized settlements were connected to sewage infrastructures and the level of pollution was reduced. However, wastewater from the outposts of Alonei Shilo and El Matan is still being released directly into the reserve, while recurring blockages in the sewage system of the settlements of Nofim and Yaqir also result in occasional pollution of the stream’s water. Wastewater from settlements flow through Wadi Qana . Photo: Bilal Mansur The planned course of the Separation Barrier in the area separates Wadi Qana from the landowners in Deir Istiya, leaving the wadi on the “Israeli” side of the barrier in an enclave of sorts. This situation is similar to that of numerous other enclaves created by the course of the barrier, which are the result of an attempt to link the settlements to Israeli territory and annex additional areas that will be off limits to Palestinians. As in the case of other planned enclaves that will extend deep into Palestinian territory, the Separation Barrier in Wadi Qana has yet to be constructed. Plans to develop Wadi Qana as a tourism site In 2006, the Kana Stream Restoration Authority was established with the goal of restoring the wadi and developing tourism in the area. The authority is made up of four member entities: the settlement of Karnei Shomron, Israel’s Ministry for Environmental Protection, Israel Nature and Parks Authority (INPA), and the Civil Administration. Members of the settlement’s council told the media that one of the goals of the restoration plan was to boost Jewish presence in the area, in response to “Palestinian elements [who are] attempting to take control of the stream.” Map of the area, with Wadi Qana marked in green Also in 2006, Karnei Shomron Council began holding an annual spring walk. During the 2010 walk, Herzl Ben Ari, at the time head of Karnei Shomron Council, stated that the walk was “part of our overall plan to turn Kana Stream into the front yard of Karnei Shomron”. During these walks, the military does not allow Palestinians – including the landowners – to enter Wadi Qana. In 2010, the Kana Stream Restoration Authority launched the Park Kana Project, which is being carried out in cooperation with other settlement councils in the area, representatives of the INPA and the Jewish National Fund, at an estimated cost of between eight and ten million shekels [approx. USD 2-2.5 million]. Over the past few years, implementation of the project has begun. The plan includes the establishment of scenic lookout points in the settlements above the wadi; the construction of a bicycle path running from the outpost of Alonei Shilo to the heart of the reserve – implemented in October 2013 with budgetary support from Israel’s Ministry of Tourism; the construction of a promenade that will encircle the area; as well as signs, information, and the construction of marked INPA paths. Citrus orchard, Wadi Qana. Photo: Iyad Mansur The project was formulated into a master plan, and in November 2013 the Karnei Shomron Council submitted the Kana Stream Master Plan to the planning bureau of the Samaria Regional Council. The plan seeks to transform Wadi Qana into a tourist activity resource, yielding profits for the settlements in the area and attracting new residents. The plan includes the construction of roads connecting the settlements one to another and linking the settlements to the wadi; the construction of scenic routes, bicycle paths, and footpaths connecting the wadi to the settlements above; and the establishment of lookout points, car parks, and picnic sites in the area. Forcing Palestinians out of Wadi Qana Like other Palestinian villages, Deir Istiya is plagued by high rates of unemployment. Due to low wagesm even residents who are employed struggle to support their families. Most of the village’s land is situated in Area C, and Israel prevents use of the land for industrial or commercial purposes. Farmland in the area, including in Wadi Qana, constitutes one of the few sources of livelihood available to the residents. The displacement of Palestinian farmers from Wadi Qana began with the pollution caused by wastewater from the settlements built above the stream. Since the restoration of the stream, displacement continues through the development of the area as an Israeli tourism site. Following this development, the INPA and the Civil Administration have begun imposing severe restrictions on Palestinian farming in the area, claiming that it damages nature in the reserve. In 2010, INPA inspectors raked and destroyed irrigation channels dug by the residents to divert water from the stream to their plots of land. Since 2011, the INPA has kept farmers from planting trees on their land in the wadi by confiscating saplings and uprooting trees. To date, around 1,000 trees have been uprooted and orders served for the uprooting of thousands more trees. In 2012, a number of Palestinian landowners filed a petition with the High Court of Justice against the Civil Administration and the INPA who had issued orders for the uprooting of some 1,500 olive trees. The authorities claimed that the orders were issued against newly planted trees that form part of a “clear trend to farm natural areas” in the reserve, thereby damaging the natural flora, the topography, and the character of the habitat. After negotiations, the representatives of the petitioners and the state agreed that the parties would work together to mark the trees designated for uprooting. In May 2013, the Court granted this agreement the status of a court ruling. While reading their decision, the justices noted that the trees uprooted would have to have been planted during the two years prior to the issuing of the orders, i.e. after April 2010. Nevertheless, the landowners say that in the ensuing months, INPA inspectors also marked trees planted prior to this date. Natural pool, Wadi Qana. Photo: B’Tselem, 27 March 2014 Authorities ignore damage to the nature reserve caused by settlers In contrast to the stringent enforcement measures imposed on Palestinian farmers, Israeli authorities turn a blind eye to illegal activities by settlers in the nature reserve, such as massive construction, building roads, and discharging wastewater into the wadi. In its response to the High Court of Justice petition against the uprooting of trees, the INPA argued that it “looks into any damage within the area of the nature reserve, regardless of the identity of its perpetrator, and recommends the cessation of the [activity causing] damage and the terminating the phenomenon whenever it occurs.” In practice, however, the INPA ignores, or at the very least responds extremely slowly, regarding the following offenses: Approximately 100 homes in the settlements of Yaqir, Nofim, and Karnei Shomron were constructed within the area of the reserve. In 2014, master plans were submitted which provided for the expansion of the settlement of Yakir and the retroactive approval of the outpost of El Matan. These plans include rezoning as residential areas currently defined as a nature reserve. The access road to the outpost of Alonei Shilo was built within the area of the nature reserve. In August 2014, a new road was constructed in the reserve, running from Alonei Shilo to Immanuel. The roadwork was undertaken without a permit and caused damage to the reserve. Work was halted following complaints from Palestinian residents of the neighboring villages. Over six month later, the INPA is still investigating. As noted, wastewater from the settlements above Wadi Qana was released into the stream for about 20 years without hindrance. Even now, the stream continues to be polluted by wastewater from the outposts and when the sewage system serving the settlements malfunctions. Olive grove, Wadi Qana. Photo: Iyad Mansur The natural environment of Wadi Qana is indeed unique and impressive and is worthy of protection. However, traditional Palestinian agriculture in the area forms an integral part of this nature. The conduct of the Israeli authorities – reducing the volume of water in the stream by water drilling in the area; enabling pollution of the stream with wastewater from the settlements – forced Palestinian farmers to alter their agricultural use of the wadi from irrigated crops to olive trees. A genuine effort to restore the wadi must include restoration of the stream’s flow and the cessation of any release of wastewater, enabling the farmers to revert to their former practice of making a living off irrigated crops in the wadi. Even if it is right to declare a nature reserve in the area, such a reserve must first and foremost serve the Palestinian public to whom it belongs. In practice, however, the declaration of a nature reserve in Wadi Qana, as elsewhere in Area C, is mainly intended to exclude Palestinians from their land. Hundreds of thousands of hectares of Area C land – 14% of Area C – have been declared nature reserves or national parks. In all these areas, Israeli authorities keep Palestinians from building and developing and restrict their use of the land, just as they do elsewhere by declaring firing zones and state land. The displacement of the Palestinian farmers from their land in Wadi Qana violates their right to property and to a livelihood. They are being forced out on the pretext of safeguarding local nature, yet no one keeps the settlements from grossly trampling this very same nature. The plans to transform the wadi into a park studded with scenic routes, footpaths, and visitors expose the true purpose underpinning the actions of the INPA and the Civil Administration: strengthening Israeli control of the wadi and appropriating it for the settlements.

23 April 2015

Cave home in Khirbet Jenbah. Photos by Osnat Skoblinski, 23 March 2016

The South Hebron Hills

The region of the South Hebron Hills is in Area C of the West Bank, under full Israeli control. Israel’s policy there threatens the continued existence of some thirty Palestinian villages. The region, part of which is also known as Masafer Yatta ("Greater Yatta," namely the villages surrounding the city of Yatta), is home to approximately 4,000 people most of whom earn their living as farmers and shepherds. Israel's Policy: Preventing Palestinian Construction in Area C The policy of the Civil Administration is to prevent construction in nearly all Palestinian villages in the South Hebron Hills. One way this is done is by not preparing master plans that would enable the legalization of existing construction as well as future development. House demolition, al-Mufaqarah, South Hebron Hills, 24 November 2011. Photo: Nasser Nawaj'ah, B'Tselem. The Civil Administration maintains that the master plan in force is the one approved by the British mandatory authorities in 1942. Under that master plan, the area was zoned for agricultural use. However, although the plan does permit some construction on agricultural land, the Civil Administration has misinterpreted the plan’s instructions and has forbidden any and all construction. Some 30 Palestinian villages – home to approx. 4,000 people, mostly farmers and shepherds – are currently facing the threat of displacement, as part of the Israeli policy to dispossess Palestinians and use the land for the benefit of Israel. Without approved construction plans, Palestinians are denied any possibility of obtaining building permits, be it for housing or for public buildings such as schools and medical clinics. Nor can they get approval for paving proper roads. In addition, the Palestinians may not hook up to either the power grid or the water pipelines that Israel has laid in the area, even though Israel has connected the settlements to both – including the so-called outposts that were constructed without the proper permits. Although the Civil Administration has prepared several master plans for Area C West Bank Palestinian villages, these plans were in fact aimed at obstructing the possibility of development for those villages. For example, in the early 1990s the Civil Administration prepared a plan for the village of a-Tuwani in the South Hebron Hills. In 2009 the plan was updated and the area it covered was expanded. Contrary to the stipulations in the Jordanian planning and construction law to which Israel is bound, the plan was prepared without a prior planning survey that presents the needs of the village. The Civil Administration plan allocated only 52 dunams [5.2 hectares] to the village and allocated no land at all for future development. Moreover, the plan did not include the entire built-up area of the village so that, if implemented, some existing houses would be detrimentally affected. Meanwhile the Civil Administration plan allocated 385 dunams [38.5 hectares] to the nearby settlement of Ma’on irrespective of the similarly sized populations of the two communities. Furthermore, the plan apparently discounts the fact that a-Tuwani, with its school and medical clinic, services all the surrounding villages. Over the past year, the Civil Administration has argued that it cannot approve construction plans in the South Hebron Hills, because they do not meet the planning criteria it has stipulated for the legalization of construction for Area C Palestinian villages. These criteria address the size of the built area; the age and density of construction; proximity to existing communities, nature preserves or archeological sites; and the feasibility of constructing public buildings and infrastructure. These criteria are intended primarily to impede construction in Palestinian villages. They do not take into account the complex structure of land ownership, the history of Palestinian residence on the land (documented at least as far back as the nineteenth century) or the residents’ independent ability to construct public buildings to serve the neighboring Palestinian communities. These criteria do not apply to Israeli settlements in the West Bank for which there is a separate planning track. The construction plans for the settlements in the area, for which the Civil Administration made the necessary changes to the British plans, granted the settlers substantial tracts of land for agricultural use and future development. Moreover, the Civil Administration has not enforced planning and construction legislation in the settlement outposts in the area: Northwest Susiya, Avigayil, Mitzpe Yair, Havat Ma’on, Nof Nesher, Asael and Sansana. These outposts were all established without building plans and without any land allocation. Some were even built on private Palestinian lands. Water Mekorot, the Israeli national water company, has laid out water pipelines in the South Hebron Hills to supply water to the settlements and outposts and to their agricultural enterprises: dairies, greenhouses and vineyards. The pipelines pass near the Palestinian villages in the area but, with the exception of Khirbet a-Tuwani, the Civil Administration has not hooked up any other village to the water grid. The local Palestinians collect water in cisterns: both rainwater and water they purchase from water trucks. However, the Civil Administration has issued demolition orders for many of the cisterns, alleging that they were constructed without permits, notwithstanding that some of them have existed since the days of the British mandate. Several factors, namely, the absence of a local water supply infrastructure, low annual rainfall in the South Hebron Hills and ongoing desertification, have resulted in very low water consumption in these Palestinian villages, averaging as few as 28 liters per capita per day. This level of consumption is similar to levels in humanitarian crisis areas elsewhere in the world, in places such as Darfur, Sudan. For the sake of comparison, the World Health Organization recommends a minimum of 100 liters per capita, per day. Average daily water consumption per capita among Palestinian West Bank residents is 73 liters, whereas consumption in rural areas in Israel as well as in the Israeli settlements in the South Hebron Hills is 211 liters per capita per day, an amount 7.5 times that of the neighboring Palestinian communities. Palestinian boy drawing water from a cistern, Khirbet Jenbah, South Hebron Hills, 7 August 2012. Photo: B'Tselem. The local Palestinians buy water transported by trucks that usually come from the Palestinian city of Yatta. The price of water depends on how far the truck must travel from Yatta to its destination. Consequently, prices range from NIS 35 (US$10) per cubic meter in Susiya – more than four times the price of water for residential use in Israel – to as much as NIS 50 per cubic meter in Khirbet Jenbah, a village relatively distant from Yatta, which can be reached only by a long, bumpy dirt road. These high prices mean that local Palestinians may spend as much as a third of their monthly income on water. In contrast, in Israel, the average family spends only 1.3 percent of its monthly income on water. Alternative Energy Sources Israel does not authorize Palestinian villages in the South Hebron Hills to hook up to the electric power grids it installed for the Israeli settlements and settlement outposts. Permission is not granted even when the electric cables are only a few dozen meters away from the villages. In 2008, the Israeli-Palestinian organization Comet-ME began introducing alternative energy to the villages. Comet-ME is supported by the German government and works with Danish and Swiss NGOs. Since 2008 it has been installing energy devices such as solar panels and wind turbines, and these supply power to a population of 1,300 people in 18 villages. The devices supply the basic electric needs of the villages using the clean, renewable energy sources of the sun and the wind. The use of alternative energy sources does not cause pollution like diesel-powered generators or kerosene stoves. Each family in the village is allotted electricity based on its relative size, and the villagers pay for it accordingly. Solar panels constructed by Comet-ME supply electricity to residents of Khirbet Susiya, South Hebron Hills; Israel refuses to connect the village to water and power grids, 13 June 2012. Photo: B'Tselem. Alternative energy enables lighting at night in residential areas, increasing residents’ sense of security. It also enables the villagers to operate electric butter churns and washing machines, to refrigerate their sheep cheese, and to charge their cellular phones – instead of relying on generators or traveling to Yatta. Since the beginning of 2012, the Civil Administration has issued demolition orders for these energy facilities in seven villages– a-Tha'lah, Khirbet Wadi Ejheish, Haribat a-Nabi, Mantiqat She’b al-Baten, Qawawis, Khirbet a-Safai al-Foqa and Susiya. The orders have not been carried out to date. The Palestinians who live in the South Hebron Hills are frequently the victims of violence perpetrated by residents of the nearby Israeli settlements. The violence escalated with the establishment of the Havat Ma’on settlement outpost in 1997 and then in 2000, with the outbreak of the second intifada. The Israeli authorities – military and police – generally do not intervene in these violent incidents and generally fail to exhaust the investigative means necessary for enforcing the law on violent settlers. Settlers attack elderly Palestinian shepherds, Khirbet Susiya, South Hebron Hills, 8 June 2008 Violent incidents include the following: attacking Palestinians in their living areas and attempting to burn down their tent dwellings; attacking shepherds as well as Israeli and international activists who accompany the villagers; vandalizing or chopping down olive trees and fruit trees; burning grain; setting dogs on people; stealing and harming sheep. Attacks of this type – which escalate during planting and harvesting – make it difficult for villagers to get their herds to pasture and restrict their access to their agricultural plots and water cisterns. Since 2004, schoolchildren who live in in the area declared a firing zone and who attend elementary school in a-Tuwani are accompanied every day by Israeli soldiers and international volunteers, who protect them from the residents of the Havat Ma’on outpost.

1 January 2013

Agriculture

Arrested Development

A decade after construction began on the Separation Barrier, the harm to adjacent Palestinian communities is clear. With some two-thirds of the barrier completed, it has crippled agriculture along its route. By isolating communities from each other and from their land, the barrier has eroded their ability to survive and prevents any sustainable development. This reality violates the state's commitment to the High Court that the barrier would not seriously harm these communities.

29 October 2012