No let up in Israel's decades-long campaign to build facts on the ground

Betar Illit is a newcomer to the arid landscape of the West Bank, but it is growing rapidly, spreading down the slopes of a rocky hill southwest of Bethlehem. From a small outpost in 1984 it has grown into a city of 40,000, with schools, parks, clinics and transportation to the heart of Jerusalem. A...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Washington report on Middle East affairs 2013-04, Vol.32 (3), p.26
Main Author: Erickson, Barbara
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Colonies & territories
Construction
Destruction
Forecasts and trends
Freedom of movement
Growth
International law
Israel-Arab conflicts
Jewish communities
Palestinian people
Population
Towns
Villages
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Summary:Betar Illit is a newcomer to the arid landscape of the West Bank, but it is growing rapidly, spreading down the slopes of a rocky hill southwest of Bethlehem. From a small outpost in 1984 it has grown into a city of 40,000, with schools, parks, clinics and transportation to the heart of Jerusalem. Although international law and consensus hold that Betar Illit is an illegal settlement in occupied Palestine, the Israeli government supports it with well-paved roads, government subsidies, military and police protection, and tax breaks. The residents of Wadi Fukin, however, watch with a sense of helplessness as Betar Illit destroys their fields and water supply and continues to grow unchecked. International law requires Israel as the occupying power to protect the indigenous residents in the West Bank, and forbids the transfer of Israel's population into the territory.
ISSN:8755-4917
2163-2782