Global Policy Forum

Land and Settlement Issues

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Picture Credit: Uriel Sinai/Getty Images

At the heart of the Israel/Palestine conflict lies the question of land and who rules it. The collision of Jewish nationalist colonisation and Palestian nationalism, both laying claim to the same territory, forms the basis of this long conflict, deepened by the tragedies of the Holocaust and of the dispossession and occupation of Palestine. The United Nations partition of the land in 1947, an effort to resolve the two claims simultaneously, did not result in a lasting settlement.

Since the war of 1967, Palestinians have come to accept the reality of Israel within the 1948 boundaries. The land dispute has increasingly focused on Israel's occupation of the remaining territories -- the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem. UN Resolutions 242 and 338 stipulate that Israel must withdraw completely from these territories. Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip on 12 September 2005, but continues to build many Jewish settlements in the other territories, actions deemed illegal by virtually all other states. The Oslo Accords (1993) and the Road Map (2003) have failed to reach a land agreement between the parties or to bring Israeli withdrawal.

Since 2002, the Israeli government has been building a "security fence" that winds deep into Palestinian territory, claiming the barrier would keep Palestinian suicide bombers from striking Israeli citizens. But this separation wall is a major de facto annexation of Palestinian territories. By building the wall and increasing settlement expansion, Israel retains control over important Palestinian economic areas, agricultural grounds and natural resources like water. The International Court of Justice has ruled that Israel's West Bank barrier violates international law, but the unequal struggle over the land of Palestine continues.

Maps

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This map from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (July 2008) shows how the separation wall traps a quarter million Palestinians in enclaves to the east and west of the main barrier, isolates approximately 500,000 Palestinians who live in East Jerusalem from the rest of the West Bank and separates over 90 Palestinian communities from their agricultural land. The barrier severely infringes the rights of Palestinians and restricts their access to work, school and medical treatment.
Click here for the full map (July 2008).
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The Monde Diplomatique outlines the terms of agreement of the Geneva Accords (December 2003). This map shows the borders, arrangements about Israeli withdrawal, settlements repatriation, and zones of respective sovereignty the initiative aims at. Click for larger image of map.

 
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This map from the Foundation for Middle East Peace shows Israel's plans for its future borders with Palestinian territories in the West Bank as of May, 2008. The map shows large areas of annexations, settlements preserved and the long and circuitous route of the "security fence," creating implausible boundaries. Click for larger image of map.

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Map of the Palestinian territories occupied by Israel since the war of 1967, which include the