Government Moves Route of Separation Fence Near Ma’ale Adumim

August 26, 2008

The Israeli government has decided to re-route the planned Security Fence in the region of Ma’ale Adumin southeast of Jerusalem. Some 1,000 acres of Palestinian land in the West Bank, which would have been placed on the Israeli side of the Fence, would have been inaccessible to Palestinian villagers.

The government made this decision in the wake of a Supreme Court petition by the Palestinian residents of Abu Dis and Suahra e-Sharkiya. The residents of these East Jerusalem neighborhoods, which are outside of the Security Fence, were assisted by veteran NIF grantee Bimkom – Planners for Planning Rights, whose architects and town planners wrote an expert opinion for the petition on the planning aspects of the Fence’s route.

Ma'ale Adumim southeast of Jerusalem.

NIF grantee The Council for Peace and Security, which seeks to end the occupation of Palestinian land while safeguarding Israel's security, was also able to prove that the initial planned route was not optimal from the point of view of Israeli security.

Shlomo Lecker, the Jerusalem Attorney who submitted the petition on behalf of the Palestinian residents, will not withdraw the case from the Supreme Court because the claim covers an additional 1,500 acres of farming land, which will be separated by the Fence from Palestinian villagers.

Last week’s government decision is the latest in a string of victories by NIF grantees regarding re-routing the Security Fence in areas where Palestinian human rights are violated without enhancing Israeli security. These efforts are supported within the framework of NIF's Peace and Human Rights Program, which funds efforts to achieve justice, protection of human rights and ultimately peace and reconciliation between Jews and Palestinians.