Settlers demand apartheid road network
Reports from Ma’an news and Ynet.
The West Bank road network, The red lines are bypass roads so Israelis can avoid Palestinian towns and cities. Settlers now want a complete separation of Israeli and Palestinian roads, including building new ones for Israeli settlers only. Map by Poica.org.
Israeli protesters demand separate roads for Palestinians, Israelis
By Ma’an news
November 22, 2015
BETHLEHEM — Dozens of Israelis protested in front of an Israeli government building in Jerusalem on Sunday, demanding Palestinians be barred from using the same roads as Israelis in the occupied West Bank, Hebrew media reported.
The protesters also called for increased violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
Many of the protesters were reportedly from the illegal Israeli settlements of Gush Etzion and Kiryat Arba, Hebrew media reported.
Additionally, Israeli students in the illegal Kiryat Arba settlement on Sunday went on a strike in protest of the current security situation.
On Thursday, Israeli officials agreed to increase security measures in the Gush Etzion settlement bloc, located in the occupied West Bank, including increased restrictions on the movement of Palestinians.
The move wasin response to a deadly shooting attack near Gush Etzion on Thursday, where two Israelis were killed, and at least ten other shot and wounded. The Palestinian gunman was also shot dead.
Israeli news site Ynet reported Friday that the measures could include the temporary restriction of movement of Palestinians in the area, the deployment of extra Israeli security forces, and the construction of a “fence” along certain roads.
The discussed measures came after a meeting between the Israeli Minister of Defence Moshe Yaalon, the Israeli army’s chief of staff, and the mayor of the Gush Etzion Regional Council, an administrative body for illegal settlements in the area.
The regional council also urged settlers who own firearms to voluntarily accompany children on school buses to assist as first responders after attacks.
Ongoing restrictions
The freedom of movement for Palestinians in the occupied West Bank is already severely restricted by at least 100 permanent military checkpoints, hundreds of physical barriers, and the separation wall.
Since an escalation in violence last month, Israel has closed off entire neighborhoods in occupied East Jerusalem with concrete blocks and flying checkpoints, severely disrupting the daily routine of 300,000 Palestinians.
A researcher for Amnesty International said the restrictions witnessed in the al-Issawiya neighbourhood amounted to “collective punishment.”
In Hebron, another area where attacks have been concentrated, the entire Old City was declared a closed military zone, with shops forced to close and residents having to register for special permits to cross through the 18 military checkpoints in the city centre.
Israeli rights group B’Tselem called the measures in Hebron “draconian” and constituting “collective punishment.”
A series of attacks have been carried out by Palestinian individuals on Israeli military and civilians since the beginning of last month, leaving at least 15 Israelis dead.
More than 90 Palestinians have been killed during the same time period, many of whom were shot dead under circumstances in which rights groups said Israeli forces used unnecessary force.
Palestinian movement restricted in Gush Etzion
Security officials decide on multiple steps to counter violence in West Bank region after deadly attack; ‘It’s already turned into a ghetto.’
By Elisha Ben Kimon, Yoav Zitun, Ynet news
November 20, 2015
The movement of Palestinians will be temporarily restricted in the Gush Etzion region of the West Bank in the wake of an attack in the area that killed three civilians, security officials decided on Friday.
Defence Minister Moshe Ya’alon, IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot and Gush Etzion Regional Council Mayor David Perl met for a situational assessment after the attack and agreed to adopt a series of steps in the area, including the limitation of movement.
Military and medical services at the Gush Etzion junction where there was an unsuccessful stabbing attempt. Photo from Gush Etzion spokesman
Also agreed upon was the deployment of additional security forces to Gush Etzion, to focus on confronting rock throwers and preventing both vehicular and stabbing attacks.
The three officials also concluded that a fence would be built along certain highways, in places where Palestinians have thrown rocks or fired at vehicles driving by.
The regional council called on residents who own firearms to voluntarily accompany children on school buses as potential first responders in case of a security incident.
Many residents, however, are keeping their hopes for a secure reality in check.
“It’s already turned into a ghetto and security still isn’t perfect,” said Oz Zapidia. “The Palestinians walk around here and any one of them could be a ticking time bomb.”
Besides the bloody attack that occurred on Thursday, the past several weeks have seen a major spike in violence in the Gush Etzion region.