Program Description
Every year hundreds of Palestinians are forced from their homes, homes built on land they own. They watch helplessly as Israeli bulldozers and pneumatic drills destroy in minutes both the physical structure called home and all that a home provides to a family. The Israeli government claims that these houses are illegal because they have been constructed without building permits; however, the Israeli authorities refuse to grant building permits to Palestinians. In reality, the destruction of these homes facilitates Israeli territorial expansion and construction of the Wall, both illegal under international law.
ICAHD’s Summer Rebuilding Experience: Working with local Palestinian construction workers and community members, alongside Israelis, camp participants rebuild an entire house in two weeks. Campers also have the opportunity to get to know the family whose house is being rebuilt. At the end of the two weeks there is a dedication ceremony that includes speeches from local dignitaries and internationals and features a celebration with Palestinian music and dance. The ceremony culminates as keys to the new house are handed over to the family. Festivities continue with a traditional feast that marks the end of the two-week camp.
Guest Speakers: The summer program includes presentations from activists, artists, scholars, intellectuals, and leaders who are engaged in the struggle to resist the Occupation in non-violent, creative, and constructive ways working to provide alternatives to the current situation. Past guests have included Israeli historian Ilan Pappé, Arik Ascherman from Rabbis for Human Rights, Shir Hever from the Alternative Information Center as well as representatives from Machsom Watch, New Profile, Bat Shalom, The Jerusalem Centre for Women, B’tselem, Al-Haq, Combatants for Peace, Sheikh Jarrah Solidarity; Amnesty International; the Palestinian BDS National Committee among others.
Field Trips: Participants observe the impact of settlement expansion and house demolitions; visit Jerusalem, Bethlehem, and Hebron, and see how the construction of the Wall and the building of massive check points impedes and controls Palestinian movement; tour the Negev Desert region inside Israel and learn how the Bedouin are fighting forced removal from their lands; view extensive land expropriation in the Jordan Valley; meet with representatives from 1948 Palestinian citizens of Israel facing imminent demolition; explore the city of Ramallah; visit one of the many refugee camps created in 1948; and meet people whose lives have undergone dramatic transformations as a result of Occupation. The Israeli government’s policy of settlement expansion, construction of the Wall, house demolitions, road closures, checkpoints, and restricted bypass roads work together to create what Jeff Halper characterizes as the “Matrix of Control.” The field trips make it possible to personally witness the methods used by the Israeli authorities to limit available land and resources for use by any future Palestinian state.
Settlements: Many are built on privately owned Palestinian land and serve to put Israeli Jewish “facts on the ground” in the Palestinian territory. Planned by Ariel Sharon, they are meant to be impediments to returning land to Palestinians in an eventual “Land for Peace” deal.
The Separation Wall/Fence: The path of the Wall snakes deep into the West Bank, serving as a barrier that encircles and “protects” the illegal settlements. Frequently it divides privately owned Palestinian land and effectively prevents the owners from accessing their own land, including fields and orchards, negatively impacting their ability to support their families, and separating Palestinians from one another.
House Demolitions: With the Israeli authorities designating Palestinian areas as “military zones” or “agricultural areas,” all new construction or rebuilding becomes illegal and homes can be demolished if owners don’t have permits (that are almost impossible to obtain). In addition, the Israeli government refuses to give building permits to Palestinians who want to build on their own land if it sits in the designated path of settlements or the Wall. Israel then issues demolition orders for the houses that Palestinians, desperate for a place to live and frustrated with policies that deny them the right to build on their own land, build anyway. In this way while the Israeli government demolishes homes built “illegally” for lack of a permit that they refuse to grant, they build huge settlement blocs and the Wall in contravention of international law.
Road Closures, Checkpoints, and “Restricted” Bypass Roads: The free movement of Palestinians is impeded by closures and checkpoints turning a 20-minute trip into one that can take anywhere from several hours to several days to complete. Ambulances are unable to transport critically ill patients and women in labor to hospitals in time to treat them properly. At the same time that Palestinian movement is restricted, new roads that Palestinians are not legally permitted to travel on are built to serve the settlements. They not only further divide the Occupied Territory but also require Palestinians to travel out of their way, often for miles, to cross over or under them.
Wrapping It Up: At the end of the camp, participants can take the knowledge they have gained, what they have seen, heard, and experienced, back to their home communities to educate and motivate others to become engaged in the effort to find a peaceful and just resolution to this struggle.
