*Bulldozing Palestinian land

Beit Jala Action


Already when driving on route 60, we saw the intimidating bulldozers riding on the side of the road on their way to another day of "putting facts on the ground" as chiefs of the Israeli government call it. As we arrived in Beit Jalla, a heart-breaking scene came into view - a huge pile of sawed trees and olive and lemon branches spread all across the yard of the house next to the wall's path. A yard it cannot really be called anymore - the grass is turned over, two children's swings were uprooted and put aside, and the only thing left standing is a brick oven, with mounds of dirt and mud all around it. 10 olive trees were cut down here already yesterday. A red X on the front floor of the house marks the path of the wall to pass here, which will seize the whole yard area and cut the only access driveway to it. It's hard to imagine how life would look like in this place in a week or two.


We were 45 protesters - 25 Palestinians, 15 international activists and 4 Israelis. We descended to the works path trying to stop the bulldozers. A group of twenty soldiers prevented us from doing so, and began pushing us up the hill without showing a closed military area order as they are required. While the bulldozer's claws were uprooting trees one after the other, we explained to the officers that their actions violate numerous international laws, as well as the fact that they may not tell us to move without the order.



Beit Jala


Palestinians, Israelis and internationals took action against the building of the Wall in Beit Jala.
300 dunums owned by 35 families are subject to confiscation, for the purpose of buidling the Wall. In two days, the Israelis bulldozed lands, destroying around 70 Olive trees. Activists and the population of Beit Jala mobilized to stop the work.
Beit Jala has already lost three quarters of its lands because of the building of the road 60 and the Gilo settlement.


My thoughts: This video shows illegal actions carried out daily by the extremist Zionists. These actions are not reported in America's sanitized US media. Israel's elected officials and representatives continue to thumb their noses at the US and the International community. They continue to bulldoze Palestinian olive trees and lands and continue to  build illegal Israeli settlements on Palestinian lands. We in turn continue to give Israel billions of our tax money and turn a blind eye to their actions.