Settlements | The American Task Force on Palestine

Israeli settlers evict Palestinian family from their home of 70 years
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Harriet Sherwood - July 30, 2010 - 12:00am

Israeli settlers took over a Palestinian home in the Muslim quarter of Jerusalem's Old City today, evicting about 45 members of an extended family which has occupied the building for more than 70 years. The settlers claimed to have documentation to prove they had purchased the building from the owners. The Palestinian tenants, who have been fighting attempts to evict them for many years, were challenging the takeover in court. A police spokesman said the Israelis had entered the home "based on documents claiming that they owned the property".

Why a young Israeli woman spies on Israeli settlements in West Bank
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
by Ben Lynfield - July 29, 2010 - 12:00am

If Palestinians ever achieve the viable state to which they aspire, they will have a determined young Israeli activist to thank for its territory not being entirely swallowed by Israeli settlements.

Roadblocks continue to halt life in West Bank
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
July 29, 2010 - 12:00am

The road to the Al-Hadidiya village in the northeastern West Bank district of Tubas is dotted with boulders etched with a warning in Hebrew, Arabic, and English: “Danger - Open Fire Area.” The boulders arrived in February, positioned at the entrance to Palestinian villages, indicating that chunks of the Jordan Valley have become a closed military zone claimed by the Israeli army. They signal a further squeeze on the Bedouin communities in the area.

Police, settlers take over Jerusalem home
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
July 29, 2010 - 12:00am

Israeli settlers accompanied by police took over a building in the Old City of occupied East Jerusalem early Thursday morning, evicting families from three of the building's apartments. Israeli National Police spokesman Mickey Rosenfeld said two Jewish families entered the Old City home "based on documents claiming that they owned the property." He described the eviction as proceeding without incident.

Pressure mounts for Mideast talks as Israel's settlement freeze nears end
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Janine Zacharia - July 28, 2010 - 12:00am

While Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak visited Washington this week to talk about peace gestures toward the Palestinians, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman was planting a tree in a Jewish settlement in the West Bank -- an indication of permanence that few Palestinians would welcome. The contrast showed the confusion U.S. officials face in figuring out how willing Israel might be to cede territory as part of a two-state solution to the conflict.

Report: IDF prepares to demolish yeshiva at West Bank settlement Yitzhar
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
July 28, 2010 - 12:00am

The military is preparing to demolish a Jewish seminary building at the West Bank settlement of Yitzhar after residents lost an appeal against its destruction, Army Radio reported Wednesday. Military sources said that army prosecutors had turned down an appeal against plans to raze the yeshiva, which the government has ruled illegal, in response to attacks by Yitzhar settlers on neighboring Palestinians and the extremist language used by the yeshiva's rabbi, Itzik Shapira.

Analysis: A conundrum for the government
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Yaakov Katz - July 27, 2010 - 12:00am

The violence in northern Samaria on Monday was a taste of what might come after September 26. That’s the date when the government-imposed freeze on settlement construction will expire, and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu will have to decide whether to extend it, and, if so, under what format – complete or partial.

Settlers block West Bank roads to protest construction freeze
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
July 27, 2010 - 12:00am

In protest of Monday's home demolition carried out by Israeli security forces at the Givat Ronen outpost, settlers blockaded 11 intersections across the West Bank on Monday evening. The demonstrations were organized by the Samaria and Benjamin regional councils. From early Monday morning, council activists telephoned citizens to encourage them to come out to the evening protests. The Neveh Tsuf, Kochav Hashachar, Tzomet Shiloh, Tzomet Hadoar, Tzomet Hawara and Tzomet Shavei Shomron intersections were among those that were blocked.

Settlers riot near Nablus checkpoint
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
July 26, 2010 - 12:00am

Residents of an illegal Israeli settlement rioted Monday in the northern West Bank, protesting the demolition of structures built in an adjoining outpost, onlookers said. Ma’an’s Nablus correspondent reported from the scene that dozens of armed settlers stormed the nearby Burin village, opening fire at Palestinian homes. Israeli forces also ransacked houses, locals said, including the homes of Bashir Az-Zein and Ibrahim Abid.

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