Settlement activity refers to the transfer of a civilian population by the occupying power into territory it occupies. Israeli government characterises settlements as localities that consist of more than 20 inhabitants, are self-ruled, are not included in the formal borders of another locality and are formally recognised. The government of Israel commenced in the establishment and expansion of settlements since the occupation of the West Bank (WB), including east Jerusalem (EJ), and the Gaza Strip (GS). The first settlement, Kfar Etzion, was established in 1967 and is located between Jerusalem and Hebron.
Despite their illegality under international law and the continuous reiterations by the international community that settlements pose an obstacle to peace within the framework of the two-state solution, as of 2016, there are 636,452 settlers residing in 257 settlements and outposts in the WB, including in EJ, compared to 238,060 settlers in 1991 on the outset of the Peace Process.
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Settlement expansion in the WB including EJ is directly related to land expropriation. Within this framework, 40% of the WB is under the control of settlements. Additionally; with the construction of the Expansion and Annexation Wall, 12% of the land of the WB lies between the Wall and Green Line. On another level, a total of 200 km of bypass roads are constructed in the WB; additionally, the road infrastructure supporting the settlement enterprise take approximately 2.3% of the area of the WB.
In EJ, settlement expansion is, additionally, directly linked to the evacuation of Palestinians from their homes and their forced displacement. The point of divergence between settlement expansion in EJ and the remainder of the WB lies in that settlements are located in the heart of EJ as opposed to being on the outskirts of cities in the remainder of the WB, with the exception of the Old City of Hebron. Settlement construction and expansion in EJ commenced in 1968. As of 2016, there are 220,000 settlers in 12 settlements inside the Wall.
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| Settlements in east Jerusalem, year of establishment, area of settlement and land established on. |
In addition to land expropriation, settlement expansion is directly linked to settler violence. For example, according to the Applied Research Institute- Jerusalem and Land Research Centre- Jerusalem, during 2017, over 5,000 dunums of land were confiscated, with another 1,338 dunums under threat of confiscation. During the same period, 8,139 trees were uprooted and 527 settler attacks were documented. With respect to water, more than 70% of the Palestinian communities in area “C” are not connected to the water network and rely on tinkered water. Despite the recommendation of the World Health Organisation of water consumption of 100 litters/ capita/ day, the average consumption in area “C” stands as low as 20 litters/ capita/ day, and 73 litters/ capita/ day across the remainder of the WB, compared to an average consumption of 369 litters/ capita/ day for settlers. This infringes in multiple manners on enjoyment of human rights, including the reverberations of denial of access to resources/services, as well as rights to human security, bodily integrity, work, education and healthcare, among others.
This factsheet seeks to lay out the legal framework illegalising and criminalising settlement activity as well as provide an overview of the historical development of the settlement enterprise in Palestine and tracks the increase in the number of settlements and settlers in the occupied Palestinian territory.
To View the Full Factsheet as PDF
ورقة حقائق - الاستيطان
تاريخ النشر: 12/12/2018
بقلم: مفتاح
يُعرّف النشاط الاستيطاني على أنه ترحيل أو نقل جزء من السكان المدنيين من حملة جنسية دولة الاحتلال إلى الأراضي التي تحتلها. أما الحكومة الاسرائيلية، فتعتبر المستوطنات على أنها تجمعات سكنية يقطن فيها أكثر من 20 شخصاً، تتمتع بالإدارة الذاتية، ليست مشمولةً ضمن الحدود الرسمية لتجمع آخر، وتم إقرار تأسيسها رسمياً. شرعت اسرائيل في بناء وتوسيع المستوطنات إبان احتلال الضفة الغربية، بما في ذلك القدس الشرقية، وقطاع غزة. وتعتبر مستوطنة كفار عتصيون المستوطنة الأولى، وقد تم تأسيسها في العام 1967 وتقع بين القدس والخليل.
وبالرغم من عدم شرعية المستوطنات تحت القانون الدولي وتأكيد المجتمع الدولي مراراً وتكراراً أن التوسع الاستيطاني يشكل عقبة في طريق السلام في إطار حل الدولتين، وصل عدد المستوطنين مع نهاية العام 2016 إلى 636,452 مستوطناً في 257 مستوطنة وبؤرة استيطانية في الضفة الغربية، بما في ذلك في القدس الشرقية، في حين كان عدد المستوطنين عام 1991 إبان بدء عملية السلام 238,060 مستوطناً.
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المحافظة |
عدد المستوطنين |
النسبة المئوية |
عدد المستوطنات[7] |
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|
جنين |
2,861 |
0.5% |
5 |
|
طوباس |
2,156 |
0.3% |
7 |
|
طولكرم |
3,326 |
0.5% |
3 |
|
نابلس |
17,741 |
2.8% |
12 |
|
قلقيلية |
37,769 |
5.9% |
8 |
|
سلفيت |
41,143 |
6.5% |
13 |
|
رام الله والبيرة |
125,061 |
19.6% |
26 |
|
أريحا والأغوار |
6,479 |
1.0% |
17 |
|
القدس |
302,188 |
47.5% |
26 |
|
بيت لحم |
78,365 |
12.3% |
13 |
|
الخليل |
19,363 |
3.0% |
20 |
|
المجموع |
636,452 |
100% |
150 |
يرتبط التوسع الاستيطاني في الضفة الغربية، بما في ذلك في القدس الشرقية، بمصادرة الأراضي بشكل مباشر. ففي هذا الإطار، تقع 40% من أراضي الضفة الغربية تحت سيطرة المستوطنات. بالإضافة إلى ذلك، فقد عزل بناء جدار الضم والتوسع 12% من أراضي الضفة الغربية بين الجدار والخط الأخضر. ومن جانب آخر، تم تشييد ما مجمله 200 كم من الشوارع الالتفافية في كامل الضفة الغربية، إلى جانب البنية التحتية لدعم المشروع الاستيطاني. وتمثل هذه المنظومة ما مجمله 2.3% من مساحة الضفة الغربية.
إضافة لعلاقته بمصادرة الأراضي، يرتبط الاستيطان في القدس الشرقية بإخلاء الفلسطينيين من منازلهم وتهجيرهم قسراً، فنقطة الاختلاف بين التوسع الاستيطاني في القدس الشرقية وسائر الضفة الغربية تتمثل في أن المستوطنات تقع في قلب القدس، في حين تقع على أطراف المدن في سائر الضفة، باستثناء البلدة القديمة في الخليل. وقد بدأ التوسع الاستيطاني في القدس الشرقية عام 1968، ووصل عدد المستوطنين في القدس إلى 220 ألف مستوطن، في 12 مستوطنة تقع داخل الجدار مع نهاية العام 2016.
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| المستوطنات في القدس الشرقية، وسنة البناء، ومساحة المستوطنة، والأراضي الفلسطينية المقامة عليها. |
كما يرتبط الاستيطان بشكل مباشر بعنف المستوطنين. فعلى سبيل المثال، ووفقاً لمركز الأبحاث التطبيقية- القدس "أريج" ومركز أبحاث الأراضي- القدس، تم في العام 2017 مصادرة أكثر من 5000 دونم، فيما يقع 1338 دونماً آخر تحت خطر المصادرة. وفي الفترة ذاتها، تم اقتلاع 8139 شجرة وتم توثيق 527 اعتداء من قبل المستوطنين. وفيما يخص المياه، لا يتصل أكثر من 70% من التجمعات الفلسطينية المصنفة في المناطق "ج" بشبكة المياه ويقومون بشرائها للإيفاء باحتياجهم.
وبالرغم من توصية منظمة الصحة العالمية باستهلاك 100 لتر/فرد يومياً من المياه، إلا أن متوسط الاستهلاك في المناطق "ج" يصل إلى 20 لتر/فرد/يوم، و73 لتر/فرد يومياً في سائر الضفة الغربية، مقارنة بـ369 لتر/فرد يومياً للمستوطنين. فتنتهك منظومة الاستعمار معايير التمتع بحقوق الإنسان في عدد من الجوانب، بما في ذلك الحرمان من الوصول إلى الموارد والخدمات، الحق في الأمن الشخصي، سلامة الجسد، العمل، التعليم، والصحة.
تسعى ورقة الحقائق هذه إلى وضع الإطار القانوني الذي ُيحرّم ويُجرّم النشاط الاستيطاني، بالإضافة إلى إعطاء نظرة عامة على التطور التاريخي للمشروع الاستيطاني في فلسطين، بما في ذلك تتبع عدد المستوطنات والمستوطنين في أراضي دولة فلسطين المحتلة.
للاطلاع على ورقة الحقائق بالكامل
Healthcare Restricted: Female Cancer Patients in Gaza
Date posted: June 07, 2023
By MIFTAH
Background:
The Israeli-imposed siege and the frequent aggressions targeting medical facilities in Gaza have debilitated the health sector and its capacity to provide proper medical services. This is exacerbated in cases of chronic diseases, which gives rise to a need to leave the Gaza Strip to receive medical treatment in the occupied West Bank, including Jerusalem, or elsewhere. However, Israel imposes a strict and discriminatory permit regime, which has a disproportionate impact on medical patients given their conditions, and it is not unusual for these permits to be significantly delayed or ultimately refused by Israel.
The Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy (MIFTAH) collected questionnaires from 102 women diagnosed with cancer in the Gaza Strip to assess the quality of the treatment, availability of equipment, accessibility, and referral process.
The full report is accessible here.
Conclusion and recommendations:
The 16-year-long Israeli-imposed blockade and closure on Gaza have had detrimental impacts on the health sector in the besieged Strip. Specifically, the siege has compromised the ability of the healthcare sector to deliver proper medical services due to the absence of crucial medication, equipment, and supplies under flimsy security pretexts. Ultimately, frequent aggressions and targeting of health facilities and the Israeli-imposed siege on Gaza compromise the availability, accessibility, and quality of healthcare services available to Palestinians in Gaza.
MIFTAH urges the international community to:
- Put an end to Israel’s impunity and hold it accountable for its persistent crimes, including the crime against humanity of apartheid, through the adoption of effective and concrete measures;
- Exert pressure to lift the blockade on the Gaza Strip and allow for the free movement of people and goods;
- Ensure the urgent implementation of UNSCR 1325 to provide immediate protection for Palestinian women and to put an end to Israel’s impunity;
- Support the UN Special Rapporteur in the oPt, the International Court of Justice’s advisory opinion, the ICC investigation and the UN Commission of Inquiry.
The summary factsheet is accessible here.
Financial indicators for the Family Protection Bill
Date posted: May 17, 2023
By MIFTAH
The legislation of the family protection bill is aimed at the protection of the family itself as an institution, and to guarantee its preservation. Palestinian legislators are aware of the importance of this bill, which is why all ministries and official institutions committed to developing its relevant programs, policies and plans, each according to their field of expertise. Their goal is to contribute to the promotion of a culture that combats domestic violence and encourages the response of public policies to this objective, through education, health, legislation and the media. Another objective is to track the bill’s impact and periodically assess it in cooperation with other civil societies. This paper focuses on some of the financial indicators pertaining to this bill.
All family members in Palestine are subjected to violence, including children, minors, women and men. However, married women remain the sector most vulnerable to domestic violence according to a 2019 Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics survey. It said 29.4% of married women had been subjected to at least one type of violence by their husbands as opposed to 13% of men who had been subjected to violence by their wives, by their own confession. A total of 44.7% of individuals who have never been married have been subjected toviolence;7.6% of the elderly and 44.2% of children(12-17yearsold) were the victims of violence at the hands of one of their parents. Although a high percentage of women have been victims of violence from their spouse, a considerable percentage of these women, around 60.3% preferred to stay silent about the assault. Only a small percentage of women asked for help through official avenues; 2.9% went to a defence lawyer to file a lawsuit against their husbands, 1.3% went to the police or a family protection unit and 1.4% went to the centres for mental, social and legal aid.
Financial indicators for the Family Protection Bill
| Article of Bill/Law by Decree | Relevant party | Estimated cost |
| Article(4) specialization of Ministry of Social Development: The Ministry, in cooperation with government and civil society organizations, provide the following services to victims of domestic violence: 1.Protection and fulfilment of needs of the victim; economically and socially empowering her and reintegrating her in society in order to preserve the family fabric, while ensuring not to equate the victim with the perpetrator. 2.Appointing protection counsellors in all directorates and qualifying them to deal with domestic violence cases 3.Providingsocial, psychological and legal experts to provide victim support 4.Ensuringthe provision of social, psychological, health and legal services to domestic violence victims in coordination with relevant parties. 5.Preparing rehabilitation programs for perpetrators of domestic violence crimes 6.Coordination and cooperation with government and civil society organizations to provide the necessary training for the enforcers of this law by decree. Preparing the necessary preventative plans and programs against domestic violence |
Ministry of Social Development | ILS12 million over 3 years on average of ILS4 million year, based on a study prepared by the Ministry of Social Development |
| Article 6: Family and Minors Protection Police: In accordance with the provisions of this bill/law by decree, a family and minor protection police will be established, with branches set up in all districts of the homeland. It’s specializations are the following: 1.Goingtothe place of the domestic violence incident when the informer states that the violence has occurred, is about to occur is ongoing; or in case of violation of a restraining order, even if the informer is not the victim 2.Providingfree 24-hourhotlinestohelp victims |
Palestinian police and Family and Minors Protection Department
Reform and Rehabilitation Centres Department |
ILS7.3 million/year (the study is based on the number of those working in the family and minors protection department and their mean salary)
ILS1.3 million/year (the study is based on the number of those working in reform and rehabilitation enters, which includes special sections for women boarders) |
| Article7: Family Protection Prosecution 1.In accordance with the provision of this bill/law by decree, a prosecution’s office will be established to follow up on domestic violence cases in all districts and will operate under the supervision of the Attorney General in accordance with penal measures in force. 2. This family protection prosecution office will promptly investigate domestic violence incidents while also preserving the privacy and dignity of the victim |
Family Protection Prosecution | ILS1.7 million, based on the number of relevant prosecution agents and their mean salaries |
| Article10: parties qualified to issue restraining orders 1.Restrainingorders will be issued by the following parties of their own accord: a. Family Protection Prosecution b. The presiding judge |
Presiding judges | ILS1.9 million, based on the number of judges and their mean salaries |
| Total expected estimated cost | ILS16.2 million |
The table above shows that the estimated and main additional cost of the Ministry of Social Development to be around ILS4 million a year, considering that the other parties (police, prosecution and courts) are currently carrying out their roles without fully allocating specialized departments for protection from violence. However, if these parties do allot specialized departments for protection from violence, overall costs will reach approximately ILS16.2 million. Nonetheless, even if this cost is incurred, it still only comprises a small part of public expenditures, approximately 0.1%. Overall public expenditures for 2022 amount to approximately ILS16.2 billion, which means the cost of passing this bill and implementing its provisions will not constitute financial burden on the general budget and will not be an obstacle to ratifying the law by decree.
Furthermore, it should be noted that while it is imperative to calculate some of the costs resulting from violence against women, the reaerate the high costs as well. The secret social costs, which impact society as a whole. Data from the Ministry of Social Development showed (see graph), that violence exercised against women has prompted around 60% of them to flee their homes. Also, 18% of them attempted suicide in addition to suffering from mental and physical illnesses, unwanted pregnancies or others. Calculating expenses incurred from violence is not an easy process and there are no national data or figures that can measure the impact violence has on the state’s general budget due to the prevalent mentality towards violence as an issue associated only with women. This is especially true when the conversation is about the indirect and intangible effects of violence, including:
Violations of human rights; negative social, economic and political impacts; working women who get sick and need to take sick leave; lack of focus and productivity; impact of violence on children and academic failure; the rise in the percentage of school dropouts among children; the rise in long-term unemployment rates; the percentage of homeless children who become a burden on society; government expenditures for medical treatment; safehouses; therapy; monitoring cases of violence against women; individual expenses for following up on legal cases and lawyer fees; loss of income because of repeated absence from work or inefficacy; social expenses resulting from the breakup of the family; expenses of training individuals on how to deal with cases of violence; expenses for issuing laws and legislation on the protection of women from violence.
Confirmation of the above is that the UN believes the economic, social and health costs of violence against women are, to a large extent, undocumented and unrecognized. However, these remain colossal, according to researchers, specialists and defenders of women’s rights.
To view the full factsheet as PDF
Israeli state-sanctioned settler terrorism: A gendered lens
Date posted: April 26, 2023
By MIFTAH
Background:
The illegal Israeli settlement project, including settler-only bypass roads, military checkpoints, and the annexation wall, continues to expand and steal more Palestinian land and resources. As of today, the number of illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, including Jerusalem, is close to 300, with around 750,000 Jewish settlers residing in them.
Israeli state-sanctioned settler terrorism against Palestinian civilians and property is prevalent and has been on the rise in recent years. Violence takes the form of psychological, physical, and verbal violence, including beating, throwing stones or sharp tools, intimidation, shooting, verbal assaults, and assaults on agricultural lands, cars, and homes. Such attacks are committed in the presence of Israeli occupation forces who often join them.
The high frequency of these forms of violence and their persistence give rise to psychological, physical, and material harm. Palestinian survivors of settler terrorism seldom press charges and file complaints against Israeli settlers given the complicity of the Israeli law enforcement system.
The Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy (MIFTAH) and the Women’s Center for Legal and Counseling (WCLAC) collected questionnaires from 229 Palestinian women covering settler violence in the occupied West Bank governorates of Al-Khalil/Hebron, Bethlehem, and Jerusalem.
MIFTAH calls on the international community to:
Put an end to Israel’s impunity and hold it accountable for its persistent crimes, including the crime against humanity of apartheid, through the adoption of effective and concrete measures;
Stop all relations and trade with illegal Israeli settlements including international companies that profit from them;
Criminalize and blacklist Israeli settler groups that engage in terrorist activities and hold those with dual citizenship accountable in their respective states;
Ensure the urgent implementation of UNSCR 1325 to provide immediate protection for Palestinian women and to put an end to Israel’s impunity;
Support the UN Special Rapporteur in the oPt, the International Court of Justice’s advisory opinion, the ICC investigation and the UN Commission of Inquiry.
