Under pressure from settlers, IDF rebuilding West Bank watchtower

Excellent and accurate comments by r.cummings and CJ. All these settlements are land theft and illegal, especially Har Homa. If Israel is claiming land belonging the Jewish owners -(a tiny percent less than 5% of original Mandate Palestine) it must then surrender the 93% of land that was owned by Palestinians, that was sequestrated (stolen) by the new Israeli state and the JNF-KKL. The Balfour Declaration specifically said that the rights of the existing indigenous population (the Palestinians) should be respected. A Jewish Homeland was not intended to be a Jewish State under the Balfour declaration, which has no basis in international law. The PLO accepted the 22% of original Palestine, under the OSLO agreement in 1993, but Israel since 1967, against international law, has now built and grabbed over 12% of that, leaving a shredded and totally fragmented remnant for the Palestinians. So Israel is delegitimising itself by these actions. Only strong sanctions or UN action will end this.

And how does this personally effect you? Do you live and work in Israel?

That you should know r.cummings, that all of Mandate Palestine is the National Homeland of the Jewish people and not the Arabs. The Arabs nationalistic aspirations, were fulfilled in Mandate Syria and Mandate Mesopotamia. Mandate for Palestine was meant to be the National Homeland for the Jewish people as per Balfour Declaration, as per San Remo Conference of 1920 as per Anglo-American Treaty of 1924. Read for yourself.

The IDF is so weak? No my fellow readers, these orders come from the top. Steal as much as possible and don't stop until there is no more land left to steal. Stealing Arab land is crack for many Israelis and it will end badly. Like most crack heads, they don't see that bc it feels good now, but just wait.

And which is that place where you think Jews have the right to live ? And do you really believe that Arabs would except an entity called Israel on any square meter of Palestine ? Are you really cummings , goings or just talkings ?

They were first offered a state in 1947 and rejected every offer because they refused to make peace with Israel. What did they think would happen? That Israel would simply stand still for over 60 years? They rejected peace, gambling that they could destroy Israel and have it all. They lost. End of story. There should be no more negotiations. Israel should annex entire Judea & Samaria which was promised to them by League of Nations. Arabs living there should be allowed to stay as alien residents, with no chance for citizenship. Let arab states grant them citizenship, just as Israel gave citizenship to all Jewish refugees.

I thought the civilian gov't controlled the Israeli military.

And the Italian prime minister lauds and encourages. It's no wonder their is no incentive for them to stop.

The settlers and their supporters bought 7% of the land and then expropriated the remaining 93% from the people of Beit Sahour (Christian and Muslem). It used to be a beautiful communally owned forest hilltop, now it is a concrete jungle with a settler bypass road totally fenced off to the former owners, the people of Beit Sahour.

Does Shaul Goldstein's desire to incorporate the Palestinian village of Hirbeit Zachariya into the council (http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1144264.html) jives with his words about Jewish Jenin, and Nablus Either he is either Schizoid or just looking to Appropriate and control and is not interested in real co-existence based on mutual respect.

" You reallyshould learn to read" Uh huh... "Har Homa was built on Jewish-owned land" Palestinian Jews? It isn't in Israel. It's in "territories occupied" (res 242) and never withdrawn from. Or legally annexed. "Almost half of the land to belonged to one person; David Meeri, who is Jewish." Pre 1948? The Arabs illegally occupied it in 1948" Strange, according to the 1949/50 Armistice AGREEMENT, Israel AGREED. Read the Armistice AGREEMENT. You know what AGREEMENT means? ".. and when Israel liberated it in 1967, it was legally annexed." UNSC says otherwise res 252, 267, 271, 298, 465, 476. All based on International Law. "As to people buying apartments now, it`s just like everywhere else where developers develop and sell." Oh? I answered a post claiming they were the original inhabitants, returning. They'd be Palestinian Jews, no? ('You should learn to read'... )

This act is called The Surrounding Of Bethlehem. By illegally 'annexing' occupied territory and expropriating Arab land by civil, legal, military or strongarm means, we get Gush Etzion to the West. Har Gilo-Gilo-Har Homa to the North. Tekoa-Nokdim to the South. And now a Camp Sahur to the East. All of them built on Palestinian land and hard up against Palestinian towns and villages. It is only a question of time bbefore Bethlehem-Beit Sahur, already walled in on two and a half sides, is walled in on three and a half and becomes an isolated bantustan. Then it's on to Jewish Nablus and Jewish Ramallah, where the same process is well advanced. I used to believe that it was possible to come to some agreement with Israel. But it is not, the mad Zionistas doing this Serb-style ethnic land seizure and the avaricious, populist Zio government just can't stop, free land is like a drug for them. Nothing short of economic sanctions and military action will stop them now.

"Western Jerusalem was annexed to Israel some time around May `49" Document of annexation? thx (http://tinyurl.com/y8ewves/myths-mis-conceptions-propaganda/#northern-border ) or( http://wp.me/pDB7k-ki#defacto-dejure ) or ( http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/commons/1950/apr/27/jordan-and-israel-government-decision ) " The entire Jerusalem and Betlehem area was designed by the UN as an international "corpus separatum"" Indeed. Never instituted. http://wp.me/pDB7k-il "Eastern Jerusalem was annexed to Western Jerusalem in 1967." Illegal. UNSC Resolution 252 "So the correct answers are seldom simple" Correct answers can be easily shown by the EXACT words of UN resolutions and the EXACT words of various Israeli declarations. http://wp.me/pDB7k-hR "..most champions of legal and historical rights are entirely úninterested in who held what and by what right 1948-67" Legal and historical championship for rights MUST be based on legal and historical documentation. If not, what?

Your arguement is that Jews should be allowed to live in Har Homa because the land was once owned by a Jew. A reasonable arguement, perhaps. Do you therefore conclude that Arabs should be allowed to return to Israel to live in places once owned by Arabs in the past? Or does your 'legal' logic only apply to people of a certain race or religion?

In 1967, Israel UNILATERALLY extended the Jerusalem city boundary to take in much of Bethlehem governorate - Gillo, Har Homa etc. That was 100% ILLEGAL - an occupying army cannot (a) usurp civil authority functions (b) annex land. Nor can the occupying power settle its own people on occupied territory, that is simply state-sponsored land theft. The Zionistas need to appreciate the difference between **individuals** purchasing occupied land and **the state** purchasing, sponsoring or permitting building there. Individual Jews purchased 32 acres around Har Homa, which is tiny. That doesn't give them the right to build a settlement though, that is a matter for the civil authority. The legal civil authority is the PA, not Israel. The Israeli state cannot expropriate additional land to facilitate building, it is only an occupying army. That is why the UN voted 134-3 - yep USA and Micronesia again! - that Har Homa is an illegal settlement.

"Har Homa was built on Jewish-owned land": http://www.har-choma.co.il/page.php?actions=show&id=55&instance_id=15 Almost half of the land to belonged to one person; David Meeri, who is Jewish. The Arabs illegally occupied it in 1948, and when Israel liberated it in 1967, it was legally annexed. As to people buying apartments now, it's just like everywhere else where developers develop and sell.

Western Jerusalem was annexed to Israel some time around May '49, I think. The entire Jerusalem and Betlehem area was designed by the UN as an international "corpus separatum", and the Israeli government (then in Tel Aviv)was careful not to upset the legal situation. Eastern Jerusalem was annexed to Western Jerusalem in 1967. So the correct answers are seldom simple. It is interesting that most champions of legal and historical rights are entirely úninterested in who held what and by what right 1948-67.

Har Homa is LEGALLY part of Jerusalem" Uh huh. Har Homa is ISRAELI. On what date was Jerusalem legally annexed to Israel?

Amira Hass, a known Palestinian sympathizer (read http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amira_Hass), falsely writes: "Har Homa, which is described as a neighborhood of Jerusalem, is built on land that was appropriated over the years from Beit Sahur." However, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Har_Homa notes that 80% of Har Homa was built on Jewish owned lands. In fact, the Hebrew edition of Haaretz (http://tinyurl.com/ye64by4) admits that Har Homa was established on lands bought by Jews before 1948 and on lands purchased by the Jewish National Fund after 1967, as well as some Arab land. The article also notes that Arabs are buying apartments in Har Homa.

Amira Hass, a Palestinian sympathizer, outrageously writes, "Har Homa, which is described as a neighborhood of Jerusalem." Excuse me! It is LEGALLY part of Jerusalem and and is no different in that regard from Gilo or Ramot.

"Har Homa was built on Jewish-owned land" Sources? When was this territory legally annexed to Israel? (date - document) Are the present settlers the same folk who bought it in the 1940's? If so, why do they need to re-buy? http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Special/Real.aspx/122085 Polite and concise answers, with sources, will be appreciated....thx

By the time you factor in all the settlements Israel continues to claim, the Palestinians are left with a non-viable swiss cheese state. I guess that the only solution is a one-state solution with full and equal rights for all Palestinians. Israel should reap what it sows.

Bought in the 1940s. Just because the Arabs stole it in 1948 doesn't make it theirs. That Shedma is going to remain in our hands, as it must, is welcome news. It will help ensure that the Jews of the Tekoa area can continue to safely go to and from Jerusalem.