The West Bank Barrier

Profile: Deir Ballut enclave

UPDATE MAY 2005

Introduction

The Deir Ballut enclave will consist of the villages of Deir Ballut, Rafat and Zawiya. The enclave is connected through socio-economic links to the nearby villages of Mas’ha and Biddya. The planned path of the wall/fence runs deep into the Qalqilya and Salfit governorates and will surround fifteen settlements. The enclave is home to around 11,700 people, approximately 780 of whom are refugees.

Deir Ballut and Zawiya have lost 20,000 and 6,000 dunums respectively to settlements since1967. A checkpoint was established in 1989 outside Deir Ballut. For many years, Israeli peace groups have accompanied Palestinians during the olive harvest in order to prevent attacks by settlers. Since 1980, Rafat has been unable to harvest olives within two kilometers of the near-by settlement due to sewage contamination.

With the exception of Rafat, the enclave-to-be is supplied with water and electricity from Israel. However, following clashes between protesters and the IDF over the construction of the wall/fence, the quantity of water available and the reliability of the electrical supply has been reduced, according to villagers. Before the Intifada most of the residents worked in Israel. Should the planned route go ahead, between 40,000 and 79,000 dunums of agricultural land would be isolated beyond the barrier. An IDF liaison officer told the mayor of Deir Ballut that the only entry and exit point will be a gate in the north near the village of Mas’ha. With 80 – 100 per cent unemployment, the establishment of a wall/fence between the villages and their land would mean the removal of the coping mechanism of subsistence farming and would bring further economic hardship.

The wall/fence

A Bedouin family living on the land near the projected path of the barrier has been informed by the IDF that they must move. The land is rented from a villager who has Tabu (proof of ownership of the land). The IDF demolished one shelter on their land and threatened to demolish the remaining two shelters. On 24 June, the IDF bulldozed a sheep shelter and NIS 25,000 worth of sheep fodder. The shepherds requested some time to move the agricultural equipment, but the bulldozing took place immediately. According to the mayor of Deir Ballut, 24 homes in Babb el Marge, a small hamlet outside Deir Ballut, will be behind the projected path of the barrier. According to an IDF liaison officer a new settlement will be built on land isolated behind the wall/fence.

The village of Deir Ballut has referred its case to The Jerusalem Centre for Human Rights, who presented it to the Israeli High Court. The court accepted the case and gave the villagers one week to appeal despite the fact that none of the residents have Tabu, (a type of proof of land ownership).

On 7 June 2004, several bulldozers moved into an olive grove one kilometer north of Zawiya village and began to cut down a large number of olive trees. The Police and IDF engaged with protesters trying to stop the destruction of the olive groves. Tear gas was used by the IDF followed by live ammunition. An ambulance was seen trying to get to the casualties, but was blocked by two military vehicles before the injured people were carried one hundred metres to them.

The IDF has continued to clash with local and international protesters over the levelling of farm land. Villagers from Zawiya have attended protests in Deir Ballut, despite the IDF declaring the area a ‘closed military zone’.

Two civil rights groups have brought an action against the Israeli government on behalf of the villages in the enclave. According to the Municipality, an official from the Ministry of Defence held a meeting with the local leaders and offered them a compromise whereby if they agreed to drop their court action, the IDF would isolate fifty rather than ninety five per cent of their land. The villagers refused this offer because they say that they do not trust the Israeli government and they believe that in the light of the High Court’s landmark judgment on the Beit Surik case, they may win their case.

On July 6 2004, The High Court of Justice issued an interim injunction effectively halting work on the enclave. This injunction prevented work from continuing. However, the villagers then came to an agreement whereby the wall/fence would be moved much closer to the Green Line. However, the IDF started to bulldoze closer than their agreed limit and clashes erupted between the civilian guards and protesting Palestinians.

On 21 March 2005, four unarmed civilians were shot and seriously injured by Israeli armed guards as they protested against the construction of the wall/fence. Many Palestinians from the village have been injured.

On 13 April 2005, a Ministry of Defence supervisor for the Deir Ballut construction site explained that the area was a closed military zone. He also stated that he had been in the area on that day and that the guards claimed that the Palestinian protesters had been armed with spears and knives. He said that the civilian guards had acted out of self-defence. He said that while the rules of engagement are the same, ‘there are always differences between civilians and soldiers.’ When asked if the civilian guards had the same rules of engagement as the IDF, he replied that they do. He added that the area is under the total control of the Army and that everyone inside it, including civilian contractors, is subject to IDF regulation.

Access:

• The Deir Ballut checkpoint is open from 0630 – 1800 hours. According to local residents, six people have died at the checkpoint since 1998 as a result of either allegedly being shot by the IDF or denied access during critical circumstances. If residents are able to pass the checkpoint, there are sometimes mobile checkpoints between Deir Ballut, Rafat and Zawiya, a distance of four kilometers.

• Ha'aretz (9 January) reported the death of newborn twins after a 90 minute delay at the checkpoint. According to the father, the family including the woman in labour was forced to wait in freezing conditions as the soldiers threatened to shoot them if they moved.

• The road to Ramallah is now closed to Palestinians and instead of driving a twenty kilometers to Ramallah, the distance on other roads is up to 70 kilometers.

Health

• There is one PA primary health-care clinic in Deir Ballut and one clinic in Zawiya, both of which are open two days a week and are staffed by a doctor from Salfit. The doctor is unable to access the villages if soldiers at a mobile checkpoint below route 505 prevent him from entering the area. The Rafat doctor is from Mas’ha and faces the same access problem. A local private doctor practices in Rafat and Zawiya.

• A new clinic opened officially in April 2005, funded by Anera. UNRWA provided the equipment for this clinic and a mobile team visits twice a month.

• According to local medical and midwifery staff, 50 per cent of deliveries take place at home and 50 per cent at Nablus Government hospital. The Ministry of Health has forbidden a retired midwife from delivering babies at her makeshift home delivery suite. A traditional birth attendant (TBA) from Zawiya, locally known as dayeh, also delivers babies at home. TBA s are a common feature of child-birth in developing countries. An NGO has donated money for a delivery suite for Zawiya, which remains unfinished.

• Doctors in Rafat report high levels of fly infestation and diarrheal disease.

Education

• There are around 3,085 pupils attending school, all are from within the enclave because the checkpoints have made it difficult for children in neighboring villages to attend school.

• Of the 111 teachers, 49 are from outside the area and face many difficulties in getting to school on time. According to local residents, the absence of teachers is having a negative impact on the education of their children.

Socio-Economic issues

• In total, the enclave has almost 100,000 dunums of land. Most is agricultural, used to grow grape vines, olive, almond, citrus and fig trees. Most families have agricultural land which they farm on a subsistence level.

• According to International Women’s Peace Service (IWPS), Zawiya’s agricultural produce used to bring in $2 million per year. The market for such produce has almost disappeared.

• Before the Intifada most villagers worked in Israel. Around 1,000 people have lost their jobs and now rely on the land. If the barrier is built on its projected path, around 50 per cent of the agricultural land will be isolated behind the barrier for Rafat, 90 per cent for Zawiya and almost 100 per cent for Deir Ballut.

• Shepherds from Deir Ballut report that 2,300 sheep were confiscated by the Israeli Environmental Protection Agency in 2003. The sheep were retrieved after a large fine (NIS 80,000) was paid. Some sheep did not survive the loading and others were deprived of water and food for one week before the shepherds were permitted to collect them. Water tanks were also confiscated. Around 90 per cent of the sheep have now been sold, with a detrimental affect on livelihoods.

• Some people have moved with their families to their place of work as a result of long delays at the Deir Ballut checkpoint which reduces the amount of money coming into the enclave. In Deir Ballut, five families have moved to Ramallah.

• Expropriation orders have been delivered to the mayor’s office and a meeting convened between the IDF and the local residents. The expropriation orders state that the land will be taken on 15 May. The residents have started legal proceedings against this action.