Should the Israeli Fence/Wall Exist?

“The Annexation Wall is the most visible element of Israel’s occupation and control over the land and people of Palestine. Behind it, and indeed all around it, lie a series of equally ugly policies and practices designed to colonize and annex as much land as possible…. Ten years ago, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) rendered an Advisory Opinion on the legal consequences of Israel’s construction of a wall in the occupied Palestinian territory. The Court ruled that Israel’s construction of the Wall and its associated administrative regime violate international humanitarian law and international human rights law. It called on Israel to cease construction of the Wall, dismantle its sections within Palestinian territory, and make reparations for the harm it caused… But ten years later, the Wall still stands. The international community has not acted forcefully to demand that Israel dismantle the Wall and eliminate its associated administrative regime… For the Palestinians, the Wall fragments not only the land but also the very social fabric of the Palestinian people. Ten years after the ICJ condemned it, the Wall is now an integral element of Israel’s project of colonization.”

“Israel should dismantle the security barrier erected throughout the last decade to defend against Palestinian terror attacks during the Second Intifada. Many Israelis credit the barrier with the dramatic increase in security over the past decade. Not a single Israeli was killed by terror in the West Bank in 2012, making it the first year without bloodshed since 1973. Yet this was not solely due to the barrier. The remarkable drop in terror happened thanks to high-quality intelligence coupled with Israel’s ability to conduct targeted military operations in the West Bank. The number of Israeli operations in the West Bank has dropped significantly because the military now only carries out pinpointed operations based on reliable intelligence. Israel can now stay reasonably secure without the barrier. This will prove especially true if the Israeli government works with the international community to promote Palestinian economic development in Areas A and B.”

“The wall severely restricts Palestinian movement and access throughout the West Bank, cuts off land and access to resources needed for Palestinian development, and continues to undermine agricultural and rural livelihoods throughout the West Bank. Moreover, the wall and increased settlement expansion have worsened the fragmentation of the Palestinian Territory, compounding the increasing isolation of East Jerusalem from the rest of the Territory.”

“Israel’s main concern is the security of its people. In fact, the wall does not ensure the expected absolute security. In November 2014, five worshipers were killed in a Jerusalem synagogue. On 21 January 2015, several Israelis were wounded in a knife attack on a Tel Aviv bus. Pax Christi International condemns any form of violence against innocent citizens. Yet, building a wall does not guarantee safety and security. In time, people have given different names to this wall, depending on how one looked at the conflict: a fence, a separation barrier, a security wall, an apartheid wall, a wall of shame (as was the Berlin Wall), a discrimination wall, etc. Right from the beginning, Pax Christi International has protested and has been campaigning against the building of such a wall. This wall does not improve the peace process between Israel and Palestine.”

“The ICRC certainly recognises the Israeli government’s need to ensure the security of its own population and territory. This is an inalienable right of any state, though with the understanding that any measures to ensure national security must remain in accordance with the rules and procedures prescribed by international law… the Barrier cannot be justified as a security measure, consolidating and perpetuating as it does the illegal presence of settlements. Its cumulative effects have led to consequences of a magnitude and gravity well out of proportion with what may be the legitimate security concerns of Israel. As such, it cannot be reconciled with the duties of an Occupying Power.”

“Whatever the excuse, a wall of separation remains, a restriction of freedom of movement, a rupture for families who are separated, and an injury for those who lose their land. On one or the other side, it reflects a difficulty to coexist, to live together. Various walls erected throughout the world are all objects of shame and suffering. There was the Berlin Wall, but there remain those of Cyprus, Korea, Ireland and others. They are examples of suffering, as also marks the one between Israel and Palestine.”

“The construction of the wall being built by Israel, the occupying Power, in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including in and around East Jerusalem, and its associated regime, are contrary to international law… Israel is under an obligation to terminate its breaches of international law; it is under an obligation to cease forthwith the works of construction of the wall being built in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including in and around East Jerusalem, to dismantle forthwith the structure therein situated, and to repeal or render ineffective forthwith all legislative and regulatory acts relating thereto.”