On Berlin Wall's Collapse Anniversary, Palestinians Punch Hole Through West Bank Wall

As the world marks the 25th anniversary of the Berlin Wall’s collapse Sunday, Palestinians knocked a hole through an altogether different wall this weekend.

• Israel Postpones Decision on W. Bank Barrier
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Palestinian activists affiliated with local popular resistance committees broke through the West Bank separation barrier Saturday, the Palestinian Ma’an News Agency reported.

"No matter how high walls are built, they will fall,” the popular committees said in a statement cited by Ma’an. “Just as the Berlin Wall fell, the wall in Palestine will fall, along with the occupation."

The hole was near the Palestinian town of Bir Nabala, north of Jerusalem, said Ynet.

Israel began building the West Bank barrier in 2002, in the midst of the second intifada, in a bid to curb terror attacks. It has been controversial since its inception, largely because it slices through parts of the West Bank and has created Palestinian enclaves situated between the barrier and the Green Line. The barrier route has repeatedly been contested and, in some cases, changed.

In late September, Israel’s cabinet put off making a decision on the barrier route near the Palestinian village of Battir, despite having been widely expected to approve a route that was opposed by villagers, preservationists, environmentalists, the Israel Nature and Parks Authority and even residents of Jewish settlements in the Gush Etzion settlement bloc.

In the wake of an emergency application submitted by Palestinian officials, in June the Unesco World Heritage Committee recognized Battir as a protected World Heritage site, for its ancient agricultural terraces, which are still farmed today. In response, Supreme Court President Justice Asher Grunis ordered the state to reexamine its decision to build the barrier in the Battir area in light of the political implications of the move.