Israel begins construction work on Apartheid Wall

The Israeli regime has resumed construction work on a new section of its Apartheid Wall separating parts of the West Bank from the rest of the occupied Palestinian territory.

Witnesses and local residents said on Thursday that cranes began lifting eight-meter (yard)-high blocks into place near Beit Jala, south of al-Quds (Jerusalem) and close to Bethlehem.

The mayor of Beit Jala, Nicola Khamis, described the move as another act of stealing land by Israeli authorities across the occupied territories, saying, “This land is for our families, our children.”

She also stressed that the ongoing Israeli occupation policies have made life impossible for all Palestinians, including Christians.

“Without this land all the Christians will leave this country,” Khamis said, noting, “It is impossible to build in Beit Jala. We want to widen Beit Jala.”

Meanwhile, Xavier Abu Eid, a spokesman for the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), said Thursday that the regime’s recent move shows its racist and apartheid policies against Palestinians.

“It is consistent with the Israeli…policy of consolidating apartheid in the West Bank,” said Abu Eid, adding, “It destroys the prospects for Bethlehem to grow.”

There has been heavy opposition to the construction of the wall, which aims to separate the mostly Christian-populated Beit Jala and the Cremisan Valley near Bethlehem.

It will also separate the Cremisan monastery from its sister convent and school.

The move came after the Israeli High Court in last year reversed a previous decision to halt work on the wall.

In recent months, Israeli forces uprooted dozens of olive trees of Palestinians and leveled land belonging to a number of families in Beit Jala’s Bir Onah area as part of their plans to resume the construction of the wall, which is also close to the illegal Israeli Har Gilo settlement.

Residents of Beit Jala also fear that the construction of the wall may lead to the expansion of the nearby Israeli settlements of Gilo and Har Gilo.

When complete, 85 percent of the wall will have been built inside the West Bank. The wall will also annex around 13 percent of the total area of the West Bank.

Israel began building the barrier of walls and fences inside the occupied West Bank in 2002. Tel Aviv said it wanted to prevent Palestinians from infiltrating into the Israeli settlements but Palestinians consider the move as yet another violation of their rights.

The Palestinians also see it as a land grab aimed at stealing part of their future state and call it the Apartheid Wall.

The wall’s presence in the occupied Palestinian territories has been condemned by the United Nations and the International Court of Justice.

In a non-binding decision, the International Court of Justice ruled in 2004 that construction of the barrier was illegal and, like the UN General Assembly, demanded it be dismantled.

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