- Israeli bulldozers will destroy the entire village of
Al-Daba' in the Qalqilya district. The village consists of 250 Palestinians
living in 42 houses. Sixty ton American made armored Caterpillar D-9 bulldozers
will make short work of 42 houses, 600-700 dunums of agricultural land,
a mosque, and an elementary school for 132 children.
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- The military order was issued 30 days ago and required
the clearing of 50 meters of land next to the billion dollar wall (financed
by the United States) being built to separate Palestinian land from Israel
in the northern part of the West Bank. The clearing operation has exceeded
its orders and now the destruction will extend 500 meters into the West
Bank and engulf the village of Al-Daba'.
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- Construction of the 8-meter high, 360-kilometer long
wall has been proceeding inside the 1967 armistice line. When completed,
an additional seven percent of Palestinian land will be confiscated and
if the wall is extended to Hebron, ten percent of land will move to the
Israeli side of the border. When completed, the wall will be fitted with
motion sensors, observation towers every 300 meters, barbed wire, and a
two-meter deep ditch to prevent Palestinians from entering Israel. Many
observers believe that the wall is being built because Israel has failed
to halt Palestinians by other means from crossing to Israel to find work
to support their families. The Israeli wall has been compared to the Cold
War's Berlin Wall, separating the East and West Berlin, constructed by
the East Germans to prevent escape to freedom. To the contrary, the Israeli
wall creates a concentration camp of the West Bank.
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- The Al-Daba' land confiscation is just the latest outrage
of land stealing. Thus far, since 1967, Israel has confiscated 750,000
acres of the 1.5 million acres of Palestinian land in the West Bank and
Gaza. Ariel Sharon initiated land confiscation and settlement construction
in 1967 as Israel's Minister of Housing. It is clear that Israel's confiscation
and control of large portions of the West Bank and Gaza for sites to construct
settlements and its refusal consider negotiations about the land is a strategy
designed to permanently annex the land and thus prevent a meaningful and
fair peace settlement.
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- Israel's proposed action with respect to the village
of Al-Daba' will constitute a violation of the Geneva Convention of 1949.
Article 4 and 94 relates to denial of children's education, Article 17
and 49 relates to forced transfer of populations, Article 39 relates to
ability to work, Article 46 relates to property confiscation, and Article
53 relates to destruction of property. All of these violations represent
indictable war crimes punishable by imprisonment.
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- Support the people of Al-Daba' and send messages to demand
intervention to prevent its destruction.
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- American Consulate, Jerusalem Email: keenme@state.gov,
Fax: +972-(0)2-627-7230
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- European Union, Jerusalem, Email mailto@delwbg.cec.eu.int,
Fax: + 972-(0)2-532 6249
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- UN Special Coordinator, Gaza, Email unsco@palnet.com,
Fax: +972-(0)8-282-0966
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- The Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, PO Box
53062, Washington DC 20009 Phone: (202) 939-6050, Fax: (202) 265-4574,
Toll Free: (800) 368-5788, www.wrmea.com
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- Published by the American Educational Trust, a non-profit
foundation incorporated in Washington, DC to provide the American public
with balanced and accurate information concerning U.S. relations with Middle
Eastern states. Material from the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs
may be printed with out charge with attribution to the Washington Report
on Middle East Affairs.
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