The National Office for Land Defense reported that settlements spread all over the Palestinian territories are decimating any horizon of a future Palestinian State.
Since the 1967 war, and the capture of the West Bank, Gaza Strip and the east of Jerusalem, the Israeli governments started constructing settlements on lands expropriated from the Palestinians residents, which became throughout the years a constant policy of land grab and capture.
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“Settlements destroyed the Palestinian infrastructure, surrounded the residents in their own villages and cities after annexing their farmlands, which are considered the main source of livelihoodâ€Â, the center reported.
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Also, settlers repeatedly attacked the Palestinian residents, and grabbed their farmlands in order to construct illegal settlement outposts, while the army failed to carry out any decisive measures against them. ÂÂ
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“The Separation wall comes to prove that Sharon is persistent to impose news realities on the ground, a reality which will obstruct any peaceful solution which could provide the Palestinian residents with any hope to establish their independent and viable state, with geographical contiguityâ€Â, the center reported.
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The facts imposed by settlements and the Wall blocks any contiguity between the Palestinian areas, transforming the gates of the separation wall as fixed crossings isolating the Palestinian territories and the residents from each other.
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“These procedures, and forced realities do not provide the future Palestinian state with any chance of survival, since its areas will be completely separated from each otherâ€Â.
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Recently, the Israeli Peace Now movement published a report which revealed that the accelerating of settlement construction and the separation Wall is actually killing any hope of the two-state solution.
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“Israel announced recently 23 bids for constructions in settlements, currently the Israeli government is building 21settlements, and 40 settlements are significantly expending, in addition to settlement roads which are paved over lands annexed from the residentsâ€Â, Peace now reported.
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Since the beginning of 2005, the Israeli government announced 123 bids for constructions in three West Bank settlements, Giv’at Ze’ev, Ariel, and al-Kana.
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Also, settlements near the northern West Bank city of Qalqilia are expanding, especially the settlements of Alfeh Menashe and Tzofim.ÂÂ
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Israel also resumed the construction in Maali Adumim settlement, especially to the east of the settlement in an area known as “area 7â€Â, which will lead to annexing five settlements to Maali Adumim.
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“The Maali Adumim plan intends to expand the settlement inside the separation wall area, 15km east of Jerusalem, and will completely bloc any geographical contiguity of the Palestinian areas, the constructions and the expansion plans are all conduced and approved by the Israeli governmentâ€Â, Peace Now reported.
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Over the last three months, Israel confiscated and announced intentions to annex 28931 Dunams of Palestinian farmlands, and bulldozed thousands of orchards, planted mainly with Olive trees.
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Thousands of trees were uprooted, extremist settlers groups carried out more than 30 major attacks, while the army failed to stop them or bar them from repeating their attacks.
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“The Sharon government wants to impose new realities, and add these realities to his disengagement plan, by implementing his settlement plans and surrounding the Palestinian areas, completely isolating them from each otherâ€Â, Peace Now added.
