http://www.detnews.com/2001/editorial/0107/17/a07-248262.htm
Wave of ethnic cleansing clears Palestinian homes
By Sherri Muzher
Special to The Detroit News
July 17, 2001
It's been said the "home is where the heart is." Try telling this to
Israeli demolition teams, who come protected by hundreds of troops to
destroy Palestinian homes. The United States has been critical. Yet,
the Israeli government -- enjoying impunity since the Palestinian
uprising against Israeli occupation began on Sept. 28, 2000 --
continues.
During the last campaign of home demolition, called "Operation
Enjoyable Song," more than 32 shelters were demolished -- housing some
400 people. At the time, it was the worst act of destruction since the
uprising began. That the civilized world remains silent as Palestinian
civilians go homeless is difficult enough to comprehend, though
nothing new. That the Israeli government seems to think making more
Palestinians homeless builds trust and enhances an imaginary
"cease-fire" is astonishing.
Sadly, home demolitions have been used as a form of collective
punishment and ethnic cleansing for many years. Even the Oslo Accords
represented no reprieve for the destruction of Palestinian homes. In
many cases, the demolitions accelerated.
The pretext has generally been that the homes are built without
permits. Forget the fact that Palestinians trying to obtain permits
is like pulling teeth. Forget the fact that a building permit could
cost as much as $20,000 and take five years to obtain. Forget the fact
that Palestinians are often living in severely cramped spaces.
Palestinians are not given permits because they "violate existing
zoning laws."
Such adherence to laws by Israel is admirable, except that it has
always been politically motivated.
Almost all the homes that have been demolished, or have received
demolition orders, are situated near existing illegal Jewish
settlements or bypass roads. The demolitions result in areas that
prevent territorial contiguity between Palestinian population centers
or neighboring Israeli military installations.
The logic can be quite astonishing, at times. Consider that in many
cases, Palestinian homes have been demolished for being built too
close to a Jewish edifice -- a structure that did not even exist when
the Palestinian home was first constructed.
While Israel has targeted Palestinian homes for destruction, Israel
has authorized massive housing construction, tax incentives, and roads
and related infrastructure for illegal Jewish settlements in the West
Bank, including East Jerusalem. Even as thousands of completed units
have stood empty, the Israeli Housing Ministry has authorized more
illegal settlements. The ministry admitted that almost a quarter of
all units built by the government in the West Bank between 1989 and
1992 had never been occupied.
Like the seizure of Palestinian ID cards in Jerusalem, house
demolitions have served as another form of ethnic cleansing that is
designed to keep the Palestinian population numbers down or force them
to leave. The Israeli rationale is: Lay as many facts on the ground
before any potential final status negotiations, and it is believed the
Palestinians will get much less than what they are expecting as a
matter of right and law.
Homes have also been demolished as punishment. It was certainly a
measure widely used during the first intifada from 1988-93. In fact,
during its first four years, 786 homes were destroyed as reprisals
against those who took part in the uprising.
It is also standard for the homes of the families of Palestinian
suicide bombers to be destroyed, though they had nothing to do with
their sons' decisions. One can only imagine the outrage that we, as
Americans, would have felt if bulldozers demolished the home of
Oklahoma City terrorist Timothy McVeigh's parents and siblings. Why
make the whole family pay for the actions of an adult child?
With regard to Palestinians from the West Bank, Gaza and East
Jerusalem, Article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention clearly states
no resident of an occupied territory "may be punished for an offence
he or she has not personally committed." It explicitly forbids
collective punishment.
Unfortunately, the Fourth Geneva Convention has never mattered to
Israel. Neither have UN resolutions or condemnations by human rights
groups.
Many Israelis have repeated the tiring propaganda that Palestinians
teach hate to their children. But does hate really need to be taught
to a child who is forced to become homeless?
Sherri Muzher is a Mason, Mich., lawyer who is a free-lance writer for
the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs. Write letters to
letters@detnews.com.
