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Israel has both effectively and officially
overtaken northern Bethlehem, swallowing the entire Rachel’s Tomb area.
The process was slow enough, ongoing for the past two years, however it
all occurred with very little fuss. Those that did protest were gassed,
shot at, imprisoned, or ignored.
Now historic Bethlehem is entirely cut off from its twin city Jerusalem
by a kilometer stretch of the Wall. Hundreds of shops, factories,
cultural institutions, religious and social centers, and residential
homes were either confiscated or annexed to Jerusalem and under complete
Israeli control.
Although Rachel’s Tomb has been a military installation for years, it
looks quite different now surrounded by the Wall and higher sniper
towers. The Israeli government confiscated what was once northern
Bethlehem and is converting it into a militarized Jewish enclave like
any settlement in the West Bank.
An official Israeli spokesperson announced Friday that control of the
region has been transferred from army control into the custody of border
guards and police overseen by the Israeli controlled Jerusalem
Municipality. This indicates that the confiscation is complete. Israelis
no longer need obtain permits from their government in order to travel
into the West Bank if they want to go to Rachel’s Tomb.
Northern Bethlehem is no longer in the West Bank according to the
Israeli announcement and the new facts on the ground. Northern Bethlehem
is not even in Bethlehem. It is now in Israel where Jerusalem is, the
future capital of the Palestinian state.
Bethlehem’s Mayor, Dr. Victor Batarsa denounced the Israeli actions as
contravening international law and any sense of justice. There is no
logic in the international silence in a world that refers to itself as
“free,” yet stands by and watches without a word. The Israeli government
just confiscated 14 percent of the birthplace of Christ.
Dr. Batarsa explained that the Bethlehem Municipality sent formal
protests to foreign consuls in the region alerting them to the Israeli
unilateral steps that converted the city of Bethlehem into a closed
canton, confined and surrounded all sides.
Fourteen percent of the historic city was confiscated for the sole
benefit of the occupying Israeli state. This damages all Christians, the
Mayor continued. We have all been raped, including the Vatican, the
Pope, Arab states, and all the mayors and their cities worldwide that
are sister cities with Bethlehem. He stressed that once again a major
obstacle is thrown in the face of the so-called peace process.
Hassan Abed Rabbo of the Factional Coordinating Committee maintains that
the Israeli procedures in overtaking northern Bethlehem were done in
relative silence. The Wall takes a chunk, the new “border crossing”
checkpoint takes another, the soldiers and settlers occupying even more
space. All of it was done under the auspices of “security,” and northern
Bethlehem has become southern Jerusalem, according to the Israeli
government. And it has already overtaken Jerusalem.
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