Ramallah, February 12: Activists opposing Israel’s controversial separation wall in the West Bank scored a victory Thursday when the army began rerouting the enclosure to eat up less of a Palestinian village that has become a symbol of anti-wall protests and the site of frequent clashes.
The Israeli Army radio reported measurements have commenced ahead of the anticipated changes in the route of a 1.7-km section of the wall following five years of protests and 2-1/2 years after Israel’s Supreme Court ruled that the wall must be moved to ease the hardship of Palestinians in the village of Bilin.
Weekly protests near Bilin have become a symbol of the Palestinians’ struggle against the encroachment on West Bank land.
Six protesters have been killed and dozens injured in clashes with Israeli forces over it.
Bulldozers were on site Thursday and tracks for the new route were being laid down.
Some Palestinians welcomed the development but stressed it fell far short of their demand to dismantle the entire wall.
Anti-wall activist Khatib Abu Rahmeh said the Israeli military informed village officials that the new route would return 346 acres (140 hectares) of farmland to the village and adjacent communities.
Once the new route is built, the section of wall currently standing around Bilin will be removed, Abu Rahmeh said. “It’s a victory for our struggle, but still a small victory until we achieve the big one: Removing the wall,” he said.
Israeli left-wing activist Yonatan Pollack called the planned changes to the wall’s route “cosmetic”, saying: “Five years of protests have forced the army to change the wall’s route, but the new route also confiscates Bilin lands in order to expand the settlement of Modi’in Illit.”
Israel began building the wall in 2002 after a spate of deadly attacks on Israelis. Some 575 acres (232 hectares) — more than half of Bilin’s land — were confiscated to build a barrier loop around Modiin Ilit, cutting off villagers from their fields.
Protesters have gathered every Friday in the village for the past five years. Soldiers have fired tear gas, stun grenades, and live rounds to disperse them, saying the protests are illegal and that the harsh tactics are a response to rock-throwing and violent rioting.
Hundreds of Palestinian, Israeli and foreign demonstrators have been injured, and one Palestinian protester has been killed in clashes with Israeli forces.
Five other Palestinians have been killed in demonstrations against the wall in the nearby village of Naalin.
Dozens of court cases like the Bilin appeal have held up construction of the wall, or forced rerouting of completed sections. Once finished, the barrier is expected to be a 690-km-long route of towering cement slabs, electronic fencing, trenches and patrol roads.
Michael Sfarad, an Israeli lawyer representing the village, said if the peace activists found their legal options exhausted in Israel, they would consider filing suits internationally.
Meanwhile, Israeli forces early Thursday raided the home of Palestinian attacker who killed an Israeli Druze soldier and ordered his family to evacuate the home ahead of its demolition.
Palestinian security sources told Arab News during the raid on Mohammad Khatib’s home in the West Bank village Ya’bad that six of his relatives were arrested, and computers were confiscated.
Khatib on Wednesday stabbed to death the Israeli Druze soldier Ihab Chattib, 28, at the Za’tarah intersection south of Nablus. The assailant was then run down by an Israeli motorist and arrested.
——-Agencies