Israel Is Burying the Two-state Solution - or Whatever’s Left of It

Source: Haaretz, by Nabil Sha'ath, Aug 31, 2016

'Strong statements' don’t work. To effectively support the Palestinians and end the occupation, the international community must stop treating Israel as a state above the law.

When the Israeli occupying forces uprooted olive trees in the Cremisan Valley/Bir Onah area in the northern Bethlehem District a year ago, to make way for the development of a new illegal settlement, we Palestinians did not mince words about the Israeli government’s dangerous path towards hammering the last nail in the coffin of the two-state solution.

It was clear that the goal of the wall was to secure a de facto annexation of Palestinian land in order to link the illegal Israeli settlements of Gilo and Har Gilo, built on opposite sides of the Cremisan Valley.

Though there was a significant international campaign to stop Israel’s wall in the area, the Israeli government moved ahead, knowing full well that they would not be held accountable for their ongoing and systematic violations of international law.

In 1968, Israel established the illegal settlement of Har Gilo on the hills of Beit Jala, the highest point in the Bethlehem District. It expanded over the Walajeh village-owned lands and now hosts approximately 2,000 illegal settlers, overlooking Jerusalem and the eastern Bethlehem villages.

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Note: Dr. Nabil Sha'ath is the Fatah International Relations Commissioner and former Palestinian foreign minister (1994-2005).

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