Settlements
The residents of the villages, communities, and small cities that constitute the Jewish "settlements," primarily on the West Bank, are living in hotly contested areas, though it may not feel like it. Indeed, perusing the shops and restaurants in the cosmopolitan Ma’ale Adumim mall, or walking the streets of Modi’in Illit (also called Kiryat Sefer), with its plethora of synagogues and yeshivot, it’s hard to believe that these areas are controversial, or that these residents could be possibly evacuated and their land turned over to the Palestinians. In fact, two of the biggest communities on the West Bank—Modi’in Illit and Beitar Illit—are heavily ultra-Orthodox; the residents have no Zionistic agenda, no ambitious plan to "settle the land." They just live there, sending their kids to school, and doing their grocery shopping.
Communities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip have been around for centuries—and some, like Hebron, even longer, since Biblical times. During the British Mandate years (1917 – 1948), Jews began establishing communities in the West Bank area, such as in Gush Etzion. Building at that time was openly permitted, as the British had committed in the Balfour Declaration to help establish a Jewish homeland in Palestine. Even toward the end of the Mandate years, when Britain no longer supported the Zionist cause, there existed no prohibition on building settlements in any area of Mandatory Palestine.
Many of the settlements that had finally gained some footing by 1948 were destroyed during the war; the residents living in the Etzion bloc, for example, were tragically massacred. During the period between 1948 and 1967, the West Bank was controlled by Jordan, the Gaza Strip by Egypt, and the Golan Heights by Syria. However, the borders changed drastically following the Six Day War in 1967, and Israel gained control of all those lands, though only East Jerusalem was officially annexed.
Jews began rebuilding, establishing communities in places from where they had been exiled multiple times. Jewish settlements on the Sinai Peninsula were the first to be dismantled between 1978 and 1982, due to the signing of the Camp David Peace Accords and the subsequent withdrawal of Israel from the Sinai. But settlement building and expansion continued in other areas, most notably in Gaza and the West Bank. (In most Israeli news sources, the "West Bank" is referred to as Judea and Samaria, its Biblical appellation.)
The Palestinians, though, envision the area as part of their eventual Palestinian state, and they view Israeli settlements as occupying their rightful land. When Israel agreed to the "Road Map" in 2003, they agreed to freeze settlement construction on the condition that the Palestinians would renounce their terrorist tactics. Disputes have gone back and forth over the years, with Israelis continuing to expand existing settlements as needed to accommodate the "natural growth" of the inhabitants, and the Palestinian violence continuing to flare up.
In August 2005, then-Prime Minister Ariel Sharon agreed to withdraw unilaterally from the Gaza Strip, dismantling twenty-one settlements there, and evicting and relocating the residents. Four settlements on the West Bank were affected as well. The stated reason for the withdrawal was to achieve a stronger, more stable peace with the Palestinians. Many Israelis felt that the land rightfully belonged to the Jewish people, and should not have been returned. Furthermore, they claimed, the withdrawal and lack of Israeli presence in Gaza would lead to more violence.
Currently, there are over 480,000 Israelis living in the disputed areas; 276,000 in the Gush Etzion bloc of the West Bank, 18,000 in the Golan Heights, and 189,000 in East Jerusalem. Zero Jews live in Gaza.
Many have claimed that the settlements are illegal according to international law. However, the West Bank is not an "occupied territory." According to the law of occupation stated in the Fourth Geneva Convention, it is illegal for the "occupying power" to forcibly transfer parts of its population to the occupied area, for the purpose of displacing the current population. Israel has never done that. The settlements have been built up voluntarily, often by citizens looking to return to their previous homes, or to the land once inhabited by their ancestors. No Israelis have been forcibly bussed to the West Bank and commanded to build up settlements.
Underlying every peace talk and negotiation is the understanding that the "final status" of the territories is still undecided. In the interim, until such an agreement is reached regarding the land, the "status quo" remains—the settlements remain under Israeli authority, and the government can continue to allow the building and expansion of the settlements.
What do you think?
6:11 am
If your father gave you land and a home on it, would you expect your jealous neighbor to knock on your door and say, “I want some of your land”? God gave the land to Israel! Enough said.
1:52 pm
The Oslo Accords of 1993 constituted a series of interim agreements, intended to bring peace between Israel and Palestinians, who breached their obligations and responded with terrorism against Israel.
In 2000, Israel PM Ehud Barak offered PA Chairman Arafat a series of unprecedented concessions. The Palestinians rejected the offer with no counter-offer, but instead launched a pre-planned wave of violence, called the Second Intifada, killing 1,184 Israelis.
In August ’05 Israel, under PM Sharon, disengaged Israeli forces and removed settlements from the Gaza Strip and northern Samaria. The Palestinians expressed their appreciation by firing rockets on Israel from the Gaza Strip and elected Iran-backed Hamas to power.
In 2008, Israeli PM Ehud Olmert made PA President Abbas an unprecedented peace offer, which were roundly rejected by the Palestinians.
On June 14, 2009, PM Netanyahu accepted a Palestinian nation-state alongside a Jewish nation-state in peace and security. He invited the PA to begin negotiations immediately and without conditions to promote peace. His speech was rejected by the Palestinians, responding in the Sixth Fatah Conference that the Palestinians are “to be creative in finding new forms of struggle and resistance.”
Israel has repeatedly made concessions and attempts at realizing peace with the Palestinians. The Palestinians have consistently rejected all such efforts and responded with more terrorism and rocket attacks. Israel has demonstrated a willingness to compromise for peace. The Palestinians’ terms are non-negotiable and not subject to any compromise: they want Israel exterminated. Period.
If the Palestinians need their own state, let the Arab nations carve one out from themselves. They have far more land to spare than Israel.
5:30 pm
ok children… GOD OWNS EVERYTHING.. BELIEVE IT OR NOT.. THE BIBLE SAYS THAT ISRAEL WILL EXPAND ITS BORDERS IN THE END TIMES… TO FULFILL Gods promise go mess with God you lose….
3:46 pm
What scripture tells of expanding in the end times?
Thank you
12:32 pm
Encroixable!!!
How in the world do you people justify this? You want to ‘use’ the Bible to infer the meaning you choose; and disregard what is said in whole… you miss the mark, by miles:(
Balfour Declaration mean anything to any of you ‘history’ buffs? Or are you so indoctrinated with your anti-christian and zionist stance that you left God and Jesus’ commandments to the wayside?
It’s pretty fascinating, at best.
Zionism is the product of Nazism; own it. Genocide is genocide. Lies are lies. And you people seem to be a well-source for the whole bag:(
How many Christians are living in Gaza? Don’t care about them, either?
Amazing! Amazing faulty logic.
How impressive:/
8:39 pm
Since it it is obvious that you do not have respect the bible, there is no convincing you of the truth. You seem to listen to the big lies of the Arabs rather than the truths in the bible.
8:57 am
No arguements! The words of every human being is but dust and ashes; only the word of God stands forever. The land was promised to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their descendants. God fulfilled His promise by bringing the descendants of Abraham with a mighty hand out of Egypt and settled them in the promised land. There is no case, Heaven rules! Or who can challenge His order?
7:48 pm
thats right sophia, and if muslims respect and honor the prophets and jesus like they say they do why dont they accept there gosphel? jesus said all thru out his ministry that he is lord, anyone says different is an antichrist. israel is blessed,and the jews is decendents of abraham,isaac,and jacob.they are the chosen people,they will return to god in full belief and he will be there god,and thru christ on the cross and our belief and faith in him were all baptised in the body of christ!!! praise the lord!!
7:59 am
The world hates the Jews because they are Gods chosen people. The world hated Jesus too! He said, “If the world hates you, remember that they hated me first”. You all can argue the politics till your dizzy, but the facts are simple. One other prominent religious leader on his death bed instructed his people to hate Jews and Christians and that they should be treated like dogs. That is it right there, nothing else. Gods word is eternal, Jews and Christians, we share the same God, the same father in faith, Abraham. The same law of ten commandments. The fact that we are reconciling is a sign of things to come so stay focussed.
8:32 pm
The land of Israel rightfully belongs to the Jews – given by God to the true descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. It is not that the Israel does not want peace but how can there be peace if they cannot accept Israel’s God.
8:42 pm
Jews do not accept Jesus and never will because he did not fulfill what the Messiah will fulfill. It has nothing to do with peace. The Arabs alone hold the key to peace; they deny Israel’s right to ex
5:29 am
How can Israel be considered a democracy when for over sixty years the Palestiaans are excluded; segration is the order of the day and the IDF seems to have the same moral standards as the KKK had here in the USA. When and were can the Palestians build homes. The refugees need to be resettled and need to be equal citizens of Israel . The settlements make the two state solution non viable. These refugees need homes too. As a Christian I think that all people are equal and there is no master race. Yet the reality in Israel today is that democracy is only for the master religion(jews).When I read about the problem the Isralie Arabs are not full and equal citizens. I pray for peace and justice in the Holy Land; jew and non-jew equal justice.
8:08 am
I think you need to review the history, Israel did not exclude the Palestinians, they withdrew and chose a path of war. They have threatened Israels welfare ever since. Also review Ezekiel 37 and 38 which prophesies on events yet to come. Biblical prophesy has a solid track record of being extremely accurate.
6:56 am
The land was a part of what God has given to the Jewish people. God and only God has the right to say who belongs there. It was given to Abraham and promissed to every generation of his people Israel. It can’t be settled by any people but the 12 tribes of the Jewish people. The enemy is the palestinians, If peace is what they want then stop attacking Israel.
11:10 am
I agree with you.
The only reason there is war is because the Arabs want to take the land given to the Jews.
If they would just sit down and shut up, the Jews would not attack them.
2:44 am
In any case, Israel should remain there and kick out those alqaeda people. They forget Ariel sharon gave them money to live with there family and could cross the border to go to work and go to school. Now, they are griddy! they have to eat their weapons and their alqaeda’s minution. it’s an anger people, there’s nothing else to do with them, kick them off Jerusalem and and the whole Palestines!
6:46 am
It doesn’t matter what we think. It only matters what God sayes and what He thinks. The Bible sayes that in the end times people will fight over the Holy Lands.God gave Isreal to the Jewes FOREVER. Their will be no peace until the anti-christ makes a peace treaty only to take it back when they least expect it. If you want to know what happens in the end, read your Bible.
8:12 am
Amen, Helen
7:41 pm
god gave the Israelites the land from Abraham’s time and when they came from bondage of egypt led by Moses they did not obey God at that time . i say obey God now destroy the enemy before you man woman and beast take nothing and leave nothing alive or crawling as he commanded to you in the days of Moses , touch no unclean thing and take no unclean thing purge the land of all that is unclean and unGodly
3:50 pm
ISRAEL HAS EVERY RIGHT TO BUILD ON THEIR LAND GIVEN TO THEM BY GOD! COME ON ALLEN AND GEORGE, READ YOUR BIBLE!!!! THIS LAND HAS NEVER IN HISTORY BELONGED TO THE PALESTINIANS, LET THEIR MUSLIM NEIGHBORS TAKE THEM IN. THEN AGAIN TO THINK OF IT HAVE THEY????
3:32 pm
I CALLED THE PALESTIANIANS GER, BUT IN RELIATY THEY ARE NOT, THEY ARE THE ENEMY WHO WANT TO TAKE AWAY THE LAND AWAY FROM THOSE WHOM YHWH HAS GIVEN IT TO. IT IS THE WORK OF THE ENEMY AND ISRAEL CANNOT GIVE ONE MORE INCH AWAY. THE LAND BELONGS TO YHWH, WHO HAS GIVEN IT TO ISRAEL. ISRAEL CANNOT MAKE ANY BARGEN WITH THE ENEMY AND LOOSE TERRITORY.
3:02 pm
I agree with Jon. The Palestinians have no leagal right to that land. Israel needs to keep the land and eventually possess all the land given them by YHWH. He does not change His mind, as humans do at times.Israel cannot surrender land in hope to be at peace with the ger.
2:07 pm
Seems to me that the “Palestinians” can’t be thrown out of a home they don’t have. There hasn’t been any land that even remotely belongs to “Palestinians” since the Roman times. Their argument is moot.
4:02 pm
God Bless Israel, We Love Your People, And WE Love Your Enemies Too. We Will Continue To Pray For The Peace Of Jerusalem. I Also Pray That All Christians Every Where Will Continue To Support Israel, God Bless.
10:52 pm
It is in prophesy that the Israelites would return to the land of Israel and they would prosper. The land was promised to be restored to the Israelites in the HOLY BIBLE and that has been fullfilled. Now where we are at is the struggle for them to keep the land and yet share it with the others who are not of Israelite descencition. This will continue to be a problem until all is fulfilled that was prophificed in ancient days. That is why prayer for peace to the nation is so important so that peace will come for when all has been done then there will be a nation of peace. And we are to pray not only for the peace but for all peoples of all nations
9:31 am
Allen, the Bible says that God promised the land to the Jews plain and simple. Be aware of the fact that the Bible is the literal word of God and God is truth. The Israelis were simply taking back what was promised to them. God promised that land to Abraham and his descendants forever. That means the land was theirs then as it is rightfully theirs now and from now on. Case closed! I fully support the Jewish state of Israel and believe the actions Israel are justified.
12:18 am
see you are usig religion to justify terror how are you any diffrent from al qaeda
3:20 pm
Allen, You are right on. Stolen land. Ask the Palestinians how they feel who have been thrown out their East Jerusalem homes in favor of Israeli occupants.
10:11 pm
Let’s see what The Fourth Geneva Convention, article 85 says.
“4. In addition to the grave breaches defined in the preceding paragraphs and in the Conventions, the following shall be regarded as grave breaches of this Protocol, when committed willfully and in violation of the Conventions or the Protocol:
(a) the transfer by the Occupying Power of parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies, or the deportation or transfer of all or parts of the population of the occupied territory within or outside this territory, in violation of Article 49 of the Forth Convention.”
This is followed by “5. Without prejudice to the application of the Conventions and of this Protocol, grave breaches of these instruments shall be regarded as war crimes.”
The Israeli government subsidizes the settlements, provides electric power, water, roads, and other infrastructure that is denied Palestinians. Significant portions of Palestinian lands are confiscated. Settler terror attacks upon Palestinians are rarely thwarted or curtailed. And a significant segment of Jewish settlers openly acknowledge their goal to occupy all of the Palestinian lands as their G-given right.
Inasmuch as you purport to be a Christian organization, I cannot understand how your position along with your selective rationale squares with the teachings and life of Jesus.
–Allen Johnson (name and address by permission)
Dunmore, West Virginia
10:02 am
The settlements were built on unowned land, and the settlers weren’t forced to live there by the Israeli government. The settlements are not illegal. Why does Judea/Samaria need to be Judenrein? 20% of Israel’s citizens are Arab.
11:59 pm
Come on Allen, all of Israel, including the so-called occupied territories, belongs to the Jews! The Palestinians are claiming land that simply does not belong to them, biblically and historically speaking.
3:55 pm
ALLEN, GOD DOES NOT CARE ABOUT THE 4TH GENEVA CONVENTION. HIS WORD STANDS FOREVER! ALL OF ISRAEL BELONGS TO THE JEWS! END OF STORY!
2:51 pm
Amen…God is the only word that matters.No man made time frame…man made nothing…only Gods word!
5:15 pm
I really resent these fraudulent palistinians trying to steal land that was never theirs and did absolutly nothing to ever make it better. Lets review the facts ; the palistinians were the southern inhabitants of Transjordon and that was thier homeland until Queen Rahea throw them out of what is now Jordon .This was because of all of the problems and violence they were creating and because they were multiplying so fast they would have taken over that country.
Transjordon was given to the Heshimites by Britian becausethey were friendly to them & because they backed Britian in the first World War.The southern part of this country was given to the palistinians . The palistinians never hed a claim on Isreal and never occupied it. Can somebody tell me when they were supposed to have occupied this land and who was their King and Queen ?
2:53 pm
God is watching…God is listening.God does not want us to worry.Just pray! Eat the word of God.
2:33 am
those are all history from world war I and II in the 20 th Century. Let’s go back to egypt till Canaan. Moses before he died, he passed the power to Joshua who supposed to conduct Israel to the Promise Land, wich was Canaan, called now Palestine, name given by Romans and the the Knives of the Holy War. Joshua took over Canaan and the Israel, the people of God settled there in peace. The promise Land starts from Jordon to west Bank and Dea sea to Mnt Lebanon( become now a country called Lebanon). Palestinians are not jewwish and they were working as servant, slaves and guard of the back yards for the jewish families in these times. Many wars happen between Israelian tribes and the countries surrounded to take over the Promise Land from the Jewish people. And the history is too long to tell you till Israel tribes habe deported everywhere in the world and those arabic people called Palestinians took over the promised Land and the settled there. the international community, by there ignorance, wantIsrael left to go where, I don’t know. All those you see now happen between Israel and those palestinians, are writen in the Bible. The jewish people are around the world, and they will come back to the promise Land soon. That would be the Harmaghedon and the last time for the outside tribes of Israel to come back Home!
I support Israel in this cause and I know the great battle shall be soon to accomplish the prophecies in the Bible!
I can not understand when an Orthodoxe preacher said in Palestines 2 months ago, that Israel took some part of the history in the Bible to settle there in Palestine. That’s ridiculous! All those lands belong to Israel and God gave them to His people, Israel!
3:56 pm
Think about the New Jerusalem-It will hold all Gods People and will be part of it along-Adopted Jews through Christ–How COOL is that
11:54 pm
Allen, you quote Geneva Convention yet where you err at is this land belonged to Israel before the Geneva Convention ever was. You need to study history even in the days when Jesus walked among us when Rome governed Israel this territory and all of Jerusalem belonged to Israel.
2:57 pm
What does Gods word say? I have never in all my reading of the bible read a word of why we should worry about the geneva convention…Pray,pray pray!
1:42 pm
The settlements must go. Isreal has to work with her neighbors or live to see the bad end. It may already be too late. In the future, it will not take much technology in weapons to erase any piece of beach and all who live on it. Time to talk. Get your heads out! I think we are going into Isreal’s last quarter. Look into the near future of what’s happening in the Middle East. All the help in the world from the US and any amount of money will help Isreal if she doesn’t get along with her neighbors. I hope the country good luck, but I think that the future looks like crap in her neighborhood.