West Bank closure update (May 2008) – OCHA report

Introduction

Movement and access for 2.4 million Palestinian living in the West Bank has been gradually restricte by the Israeli authorities since the beginning of th second Intifada in September 2000 through th implementation of the internal closure regime.1

Physical obstacles are the key component of thi regime: unstaffed obstacles (earth mounds, trenches road blocks, road gates, etc), staffed checkpoints (fu and partial), random or “flying” checkpoints, and the Barrier.2

These obstacles, form part of the security measure Israel has identified as necessary to protect Israe citizens living both in Israel and in West Bank settlements. They are operated in conjunction with a variety of administrative and legislative measure which include, (but are not restricted to) the forma annexation of territory to Israel, the declaration o areas as “closed military zones”, the prohibition on the use of roads based on identification documentation and permits, the prohibition on the movement of people through checkpoints subject to age and gender criteria, the closure of checkpoint during certain hours and the imposition of curfews o specific communities. These measures are frequently implemented in an unpredictable way.

As a result, the total number of closure obstacle present at a given time, although indicative, does no fully capture the relative severity of the closure regime Similarly, one cannot fully assess the real impact of change in the number of physical obstacles withou considering the “quality” of the particular obstacle added or removed.

Unlike the local Palestinian population, Israeli citizen including settlers, enjoy unimpeded freedom o movement within the West Bank and along the main West Bank roads, which link the settlements to each other and to Israel. However, Israeli citizen are prohibited to enter the areas administered by the Palestinian Authority (Areas A), which cover approximately 18% of the West Bank including most of the Palestinian urban centers.

The present Closure Update provides an overview of the main developments affecting the access and movement situation within the West Bank, for the period from September 4, 2007 (the ending of the previous comprehensive closure count) to April 29, 2008.

It is worth mentioning that about seven closure obstacles were removed by the IDF during May, after the end of the reporting period.3 These changes will therefore be reflected in the next OCHA’s issue of the closure map and closure update.

A. Closure Count

Increase in closure obstacles

From September 4 through to April 29, there was an overall increase in the number of closure obstacles in the West Bank, from 566 to 607.

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