Israelis, Palestinians say "all settlements are illegal" at Har Homa demonstration

Date: 02 / 01 / 2008 Time: 22:15

Bethlehem – Ma’an –

“All settlements are illegal. The key to peace is dismantling the settlements,” said MK Mohammad Barakah at a nonviolent demonstration organized by the Israeli Hadash party in front of the illegal Israeli settlement of Har Homa on Wednesday afternoon.

Standing in front of Har Homa’s high-modern tower and white apartment blocks, more than 40 nonviolent Israeli, Palestinian and international demonstrators flew red flags and chanted slogans such as “One two, one two – two capitals in Jerusalem.”

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has given the green light to the construction of more than 300 new apartments in the colony, which Israel views as being part of Jerusalem. Originally built in 1997, Har Homa, or Jabal Abu Ghnaim to Palestinians, was partly responsible for the collapse of one round of Western-backed peace talks, and new construction there is threatening the current Annapolis peace process. The Palestinian cabinet has condemned the planned expansion. UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon has called it 'unhelpful.'

Though much of the debate on settlements has focussed on militant outposts deep in the West Bank, “Har Homa and Ma’ale Adumim are a lot more dangerous to Palestinian-Israeli peace,” said Yuval, an Israeli activist who was one of the organizers of Wednesday’s demonstration.

Israel annexed Har Homa and other areas within the expanded boundaries of East Jerusalem in 1980 in a move that is not recognized internationally. Though some settler outposts may be evacuated in an eventual peace deal, Israel is expected to demand sovereignty over larger, more suburban settlements like Har Homa, though they are equally illegal under international law.

Israeli and Palestinian activists are intending to ramp up demonstrations over the coming week in advance of a visit by US President George W. Bush.

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