Israeli soldiers behind barbed wire watch as Palestinians, internationals and Israeli peace activists pick olives.
 

On Friday November 2nd, Michigan Peace Team (MPT) returned to the Umm Salamuna/Wadi an Nis region for the second consecutive week, to assist two families in gaining legal access to their olive trees for the annual harvest. In the past, the families were denied rightful entry by the Israeli Defense Force (IDF/IOF) or frightened away by the Efrat settlers. Martha, David and Pat from MPT joined approximately 50 other International and Israeli activists to help families harvest the olives in their grove near Umm Salamuna. We were pleased to meet a member of Jewish Voice for Peace who had come to experience the occupation and assist with the harvest. The orchard is located directly outside of the Efrat settlement and is currently land locked by the existing settlement’s barbed wire fence and the newly constructed Israeli-only settlement access road that cuts the families’ groves in half. It appears imminent that within the next several months, one-half of the land and its olive grove will be completely cut off from the Palestinian family that has owned the land for generations.

The illegal and ever-consuming land grab by the Efrat settlement began with its establishment in 1979. Since then, the Efrat settlement land area has increased 231%, illegally occupying as of now over 2190 Dunums (over 500 acres).* A recent High Court ruling has paved the way from more illegal land annexation by the Israelis’ and more hardship for the Palestinian land owners.**

 Pat and Martha picking olives in Umm Salamuna

In 2004, the International Court of Justice issued an opinion declaring the building of the wall around the Efrat settlement in the Umm Salamuna area, illegal. In addition, the Court ordered the Israeli government to stop the wall construction and dismantle the portion already constructed based on the fact that the wall will annex approximately 280 Dunums (70 acres) of Palestinian farmland without compensation. ***

In a continued pattern of defiance of International law and public opinion, the Israeli government aided by the Israeli High Court has set its sights again on their expansion of the Efrat settlement.

 

Steel barriers will cut off Palestinians from their fields on the other side and from the Israeli access road.

In August of 2007, the Israeli High Court lifted the temporary ban on the construction of the apartheid wall that will permanently bi-sect the families’ olive grove and give half of the trees to the Israeli settlers. It appears that with the High Court decision to resume building the wall through Umm Samaluna, this olive harvest will be the last for these families on this patch of land. By next year, it will be in Israeli hands. If the past is prologue, the olive trees, once in Israeli hands, will be destroyed. In the illegal annexation of land in the Bethlehem region between 2000 and 2006, over 66,500 trees were uprooted or destroyed.*

A little girl defeats the yellow gate

beyond the first barrier!

Our return to Umm Salamuna on November 1st, 2007 was a small victory. Earlier in the morning, soldiers of the Israeli Occupying Force (IOF) told the owners of the olive trees that are in danger of annexation that they could not access their land near the settlement to pick their olives. At 10 AM, dozens of people, all gathered in solidarity with the families across from the settlement road, walked over to the IOF checkpoint. This time the IOF did not stop the families and activists from gaining access to their land. There is no doubt that the Palestinians were allowed to access their land due to the large and peaceful international presence. All of the trees were harvested without incident.

*    Status of the Environment in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. p. 25  (Applied Institute of Research Jerusalem, ARIJ, 2007)

* *  “High Court backs route of West Bank fence near Efrat,”  Haaretz – [a leading Israeli newspaper] Jonathan Lis, 8/2/07

*** “High Court upholds route of illegal Israeli wall…” www.imemc.org  8/3/07