Israel’s War of Attrition on a Christian Palestinian Town
Share
[aggregation-styles]
Haaretz
Haaretz
Around 50 people came out to demonstrate a week ago Sunday against the new Israeli outpost on the lands of Beit Jala, a Palestinian Christian town in the Bethlehem Governorate of the West Bank. The outpost is being built a few meters above the site where Israel’s High Court of Justice recently approved the razing of the Qassiyeh family’s restaurant and house.
The low number of protesters, one of them said, may indicate that the town’s people deem the protest a lost cause: They assume they can’t prevent the destruction of their gem of a landscape in the Al-Makhrour valley, virtually their only refuge from the claustrophobic urban enclave of the Bethlehem area.
Another possible reason for the low attendance is that more efforts have been invested lately in the attempts to solve the unreported crisis that followed the demolition. This has brought to the surface suspicion and hostility between Muslims and Christians, between original residents and refugees and between residents and the Palestinian Authority. It includes masked men, pepper spray, arson and talk about a “land-buyers’ mafia.” The crisis has revealed an exhausted community keeling under Israel’s looming construction plans.
The low number of protesters, one of them said, may indicate that the town’s people deem the protest a lost cause: They assume they can’t prevent the destruction of their gem of a landscape in the Al-Makhrour valley, virtually their only refuge from the claustrophobic urban enclave of the Bethlehem area.
Another possible reason for the low attendance is that more efforts have been invested lately in the attempts to solve the unreported crisis that followed the demolition. This has brought to the surface suspicion and hostility between Muslims and Christians, between original residents and refugees and between residents and the Palestinian Authority. It includes masked men, pepper spray, arson and talk about a “land-buyers’ mafia.” The crisis has revealed an exhausted community keeling under Israel’s looming construction plans.
By Amira Hass | 21 Sept 2019
RELATED TOPICS:
Federal Raids Threaten California Businesses as Immigrant Workers Vanish From Job Sites
Economy /
3 hours ago
Water Scarcity Is Forcing Tough Decisions. This Legislation Can Keep Our Family Farm Afloat
Opinion /
4 hours ago
Arizona Governor Vetoes Bill to Ban Teaching Antisemitism in Arizona’s Public Schools
Politics /
4 hours ago
This Israeli Government Is a Danger to Jews Everywhere
Opinion /
1 hour ago
Justice Department to Take Narrow Approach to Prosecuting Corporate Bribery Abroad
National /
1 hour ago
Free Food, Haircuts, and Rapid HIV Testing Friday in Fresno
Events /
2 hours ago
California Is a Donor State, but Can It Stop Sending Its Tax Dollars to DC?
Politics /
2 hours ago
Harvey Weinstein Convicted of Sex Crime Amid Contentious Jury Deliberations
Crime /
3 hours ago
Federal Raids Threaten California Businesses as Immigrant Workers Vanish From Job Sites
Economy /
3 hours ago
Water Scarcity Is Forcing Tough Decisions. This Legislation Can Keep Our Family Farm Afloat
Opinion /
4 hours ago
Arizona Governor Vetoes Bill to Ban Teaching Antisemitism in Arizona’s Public Schools
Politics /
4 hours ago
This Israeli Government Is a Danger to Jews Everywhere
Opinion /
1 hour ago
Justice Department to Take Narrow Approach to Prosecuting Corporate Bribery Abroad
National /
1 hour ago
Free Food, Haircuts, and Rapid HIV Testing Friday in Fresno
Events /
2 hours ago
California Is a Donor State, but Can It Stop Sending Its Tax Dollars to DC?
Politics /
2 hours ago
Harvey Weinstein Convicted of Sex Crime Amid Contentious Jury Deliberations
Crime /
3 hours ago
Federal Raids Threaten California Businesses as Immigrant Workers Vanish From Job Sites
Economy /
3 hours ago
Water Scarcity Is Forcing Tough Decisions. This Legislation Can Keep Our Family Farm Afloat
Opinion /
4 hours ago
Arizona Governor Vetoes Bill to Ban Teaching Antisemitism in Arizona’s Public Schools
Politics /
4 hours ago
How Your Air Conditioner Can Help the Power Grid, Rather Than Overloading It
As summer arrives, people are turning on air conditioners in most of the U.S. But if you’re like me, you always feel a little guilty a...
Energy /
30 seconds ago
Categories
Latest
Videos

Energy /
30 seconds ago
How Your Air Conditioner Can Help the Power Grid, Rather Than Overloading It

Latest /
25 minutes ago
Hundreds of Laid-off CDC Employees Are Being Reinstated

Opinion /
1 hour ago
This Israeli Government Is a Danger to Jews Everywhere

National /
1 hour ago
Justice Department to Take Narrow Approach to Prosecuting Corporate Bribery Abroad

Events /
2 hours ago
Free Food, Haircuts, and Rapid HIV Testing Friday in Fresno

Politics /
2 hours ago
California Is a Donor State, but Can It Stop Sending Its Tax Dollars to DC?

Food /
7 days ago