ARIJ: The occupation decides to seize 658 dunums in the Wadi al-Nar area

ARIJ: The occupation decides to seize 658 dunums in the Wadi al-Nar area

The Applied Research Institute "ARIJ" revealed, on Saturday, that the Israeli occupation authorities issued a decision, Friday evening, to seize hundreds of dunams of Palestinian lands in the occupied West Bank, all of them in the Wadi An-Nar area and its mountains Which is located in the heart of the road linking the north and south of the West Bank, and this comes after the Israeli military orders issued by the occupation army against the Palestinian environment and the depletion of its natural resources in the area of ​​Wadi al-Nar, which the occupation calls "Kidron Valley" in 2019.

Thus, Israel once again strikes against the wall of all laws and agreements to issue the new order under the name of “Ordinance Concerning the Land Law (Expropriation for the Public Interest) - (Judea and Samaria) No. 321, (5729-1969) - Decision Concerning Expropriation and Taking of the Right to Dispose (Wadi Water Complex) Kidron Horknia No. H / 1/21) with hundreds of dunams of Palestinian land in the occupied West Bank.

A report issued by the "ARIJ" Institute said: The Israeli military order stipulates the seizure and appropriation of a plot of land with a total area of ​​658,345 dunums of the lands of the town of Al-Abidiyeh in Basin No. 6, in the sites of Kareen Al-Hamam, Jalin and Sanam Al-Baqa ´, under the pretext of establishing a water complex for the use of the entire Jordan Valley and the Sea area. The Dead Sea (especially the Israeli settlements in the Jordan Valley and the Dead Sea regions).

It should be noted that on April 6, 2019, the Israeli occupation army published a military order regarding the powers related to the water laws (Judea and Samaria) (No. 92-1967) under the name “Laying the sewage line Kidron / Mar Saba-Horkania section” and No. 4/2019 1 / “As part of the campaign to the Jeon Company and the Coordination and Liaison Office for the suburbs of Jerusalem / Jericho. And it came to the Palestinian natural resources through the exploitation of wastewater and its treatment to be used for agricultural purposes.

The ARIJ Institute said: “The Israeli decision aims to change the natural route of the Wadi al-Nar wastewater line, which comes within the decisions related to the occupation’s control. Since the occupation of the West Bank in 1967, Israel has deliberately neglected development projects for the sewage sector in the Palestinian territories.”

Rejection of Palestinian plans

He added: Although the Palestinian National Authority has developed plans and strategies for wastewater and its treatment, it met with Israeli refusal, as Israel suspended and hindered the implementation of projects related to water and sanitation in the Palestinian territories, as well as the case with regard to wastewater. The area is considered one of the sites that suffer from environmental and health problems and the degradation of the surrounding agricultural lands, in addition to the risks of contamination of groundwater as a result of the flow of wastewater from some Bethlehem governorate localities, in addition to some Palestinian communities and illegal settlements established on the lands of the Jerusalem Governorate, without taking into account Take into account the resulting environmental and health damages. The amount of wastewater flowing about 35 thousand cups per day through Wadi Al Nar to pass through the neighboring agricultural lands, and the flow of wastewater continues towards the lands of Al-Abidiya and Al-Sawahrah Al-Sharqiya, reaching the shores of the Dead Sea.

It is worth noting that a Palestinian project to establish a central water treatment plant in the Abidiyeh area was previously proposed to solve the problem of environmental pollution and reuse of treated water in the field of agriculture. This project is considered a strategic project, as it is one of the most important solutions that will improve the amount of water for agriculture in order to enhance the resilience of farmers in their lands. However, the obstacles and conditions set by the Israeli side prevented the project from succeeding, thus depriving the Palestinians of their rights to manage their natural resources and benefit from their natural resources. Environmentally and economically.

In order for Israel to approve and grant the necessary permits to establish development projects in Area C, these projects must be joint with the settlements to treat wastewater, and the Israeli proposal is to build a wastewater treatment plant in the Nabi Musa area under their administration, and thus this proposal was rejected by the Palestinian side. Because this is an attempt to legitimize the existence of the Israeli settlements established on Palestinian lands, especially in the East Jerusalem area.

The report considered that “it is clear that the Israeli strategy in this regard is to tighten its control over all Palestinian water resources. The treatment, which is an important water source, and this is evident through the request of Israel to the Palestinian Authority to pay 0.2-2.1 shekels / cubic meter in exchange for treating every cup of wastewater. The succession of Palestinian Authority funds that the Israeli government collects in exchange for treating the wastewater flowing from the Palestinian lands towards the Green Line in stations inside Israel.

A demand to pressure Israel to respect international laws

The report said: “What Israel is doing is one-sided, and it contradicts the agreements signed between the Israeli and Palestinian sides, in addition to that it has not been presented to the Palestinian Authority through the joint committee that resumed its work in 2017, and in light of the above, everyone must. Including the international community and donor countries, the insistence and pressure on Israel to grant the Palestinians complete freedom to manage their natural resources, and to implement environmentally sound management of wastewater, which includes the establishment of wastewater treatment units in appropriate areas, with an emphasis on ensuring the Palestinians´ right to compensation for what they caused. The Israeli occupation caused damages and crimes against the Palestinian environment.

He added: The duties of the occupying power, as defined in the Hague Regulations of 1907 (Articles 42-56) and the Fourth Geneva Convention (Fourth Geneva Convention, Articles 27-34, and 47-78), in addition to some provisions of the First Additional Protocol and the Law Customary International Humanitarian and Environmental Law states that “the occupying power must use all means available to it to ensure adequate hygiene and sanitation standards, in addition to the supply of food and medical care to the population under occupation.”

The ARIJ report continued: However, the Israeli occupation is not satisfied with dealing with the Palestinians as residents of a neighboring country when talking about its duties as an occupier, but it also prevents the Palestinians from developing the infrastructure related to establishing sewage networks and treatment plants in many areas of the West Bank, especially the classified areas. A: Thus, the Palestinian people are under a grave and systematic environmental injustice by the occupation, which is a clear violation of the environmental justice stipulated in these laws and agreements signed by the State of Israel, and it is necessary to work to protect the Palestinian environment fairly in accordance with the laws to safeguard rights and implement the existing laws regarding them.