Will wonders never cease?
A few days ago I posted an article about an international campaign that has been launched to try and save the Palestinian village of Susiya from demolition. Apparently the campaign is picking up steam.
The following is from a press briefing held last Thursday by State Departmentspokesperson John Kirby:
QUESTION: Do you have a reaction to reports that Israel may demolish part of a village called Susiya in the West Bank for expanding settlements?MR KIRBY: I do. We’re closely following developments in the village of Susiya in the West Bank, and we strongly urge the Israeli authorities to refrain from carrying out any demolitions in the village. Demolition of this Palestinian village or of parts of it, and evictions of Palestinians from their homes would be harmful and provocative. Such actions have an impact beyond those individuals and families who are evicted. We are concerned that the demolition of this village may worsen the atmosphere for a peaceful resolution and would set a damaging standard for displacement and land confiscation, particularly given settlement-related activity in the area. We urge Israeli authorities to work with the residents of the village to finalize a plan for the village that addresses the residents’ humanitarian needs.
EU officials have also issued a statement calling upon Israel not to go ahead with plans to demolish the village and forcibly remove its residents.
Approval for the demolition was given by an Israeli court back in May. Since then protests over the decision have been growing. The village reportedly is scheduled to be demolished sometime between now and August 3.
The struggle over Susiya, located in the West Bank’s area C, has been going on for many years. A Jewish settlement was built in close proximity to the village in 1983. The settlers ended up usurping village land to build an “archaeological park.” The original Palestinian inhabitants, forced out of their homes, resettled nearby and have been fighting to hang onto their land ever since.
A congresswoman from California, Anna Eshoo, has sent a letter to John Kerry urging him to “take immediate action to prevent the demolition” of the village. You can go here to read the full text of the letter. So far eight other Congress members have signed onto the letter: Keith Ellison, Bobby Rush, Lois Capps, Andre Carson, Chellie Pingree, Jim McDermott, Jim McGovern, and John Conyers.
Yeah, I know. Nine people out of 435 does not amount to much. And even if this one village does get saved, that doesn’t mean we’re going to see a major change in US policy. But certainly it’s nice to see a little bit less timidity from US officials in the face of Israeli outrages. Hopefully it’s a sign of better things to come.
Call to Action to Save Palestinian Village from Demolition
Yet another Palestinian village is on the verge of being demolished by Israeli bulldozers. The village is called Susiya and is located in the West Bank, in Area C, which is under full Israeli occupation.
You can go here to read a news article about the situation. The people who live there have been fighting a legal battle for years to try and save their village, but the Israeli High Court issued a ruling in May that will enable the Army to proceed with demolishing the village.
As these things always go, the Palestinian village, which existed prior to the establishment of the state of Israel, is to be torn down, while the illegal Jewish settlement, built close by, will remain. But that, of course, is how things work in an apartheid state.
In this particular case, however, an international campaign has been launched with the object of saving Susiya. You can go here to check that out. People are being asked to send out two emails. The first is to a group of 12 European officials, including Federica Mogherini, alerting them to the threat to Susiya and asking them to “restrict the sale of all Israeli settlement products in Europe.”
The second email is to be sent to the Israeli ambassador in whatever country you happen to live (and email addresses are given for Israeli ambassadors in a host of countries around the world) expressing the opinion that “to forcefully evict an entire village is a cruel and illegal act.”
Cruelties and illegalities are of course the foundation rocks upon which Israel rests. You can go here to see a list of 418 Palestinian villages that have been destroyed since the Nakba.
Will Susiya become the next?
The views expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Blog!
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