the Settlements Part 1

March 17th and 18th
Oh the days here pass with the rising and falling of the sun. At 6am sharp the sun peeks over the mountaintops from the east and by 5:30pm the sun is almost set below the tree line of my kibbutz to the West. We study every day, in class. Sometimes there are games and others straight grammar. Yesterday I missed class because I had my first physical therapy appointment in Rehovot. It went surprisingly well- I now have exercises to attend to daily and a new Russian/now Israeli friend who just happens to be my physical therapist. Well I won’t bore you all with menial things occured. But I actually do have a topic of interest for today’s blog: settlements. Bum Bum Bum…
To give you all a bit of background: Under the the Oslo Peace Accords signed in 1994, Israel has full control of about 60% of the occupied West Bank. Palestinians have full control and building rights in only 17% of the total territory. The Oslo accords were only meant to be temporary, but their provisions have lasted 16 years. Close to 500,000 Jews live in more than 100 settlements built since Israel's 1967 occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem. They are illegal under international law, although Israel disputes this. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8537068.stm)
Though the Balfour Declaration (look it up people!) wasn’t exactly fair because it pushed Palestinians out of their land, it happened. Just about everywhere else in the world when land is won in a war it is won. Though I realize this point of view may be rather archaic, Israel proved its dominance and right to maintain autonomy over Eretz Israel in the Independence War, The Yom Kippur War, the Six Day War and both Intifada’s. The Israeli people have at the very least earned their right to be here. They turned the desert into an agricultural anomaly. Beautiful, lush and brimming with vegetation and new agricultural technology. While Occupied Territory, Israel has a right to defend itself. To uphold its sovereignty, especially against suicide bombings and anti-Israel movements. The idea of settlements continually being built is more or less a slap in the face to the Palestinian people.