Life Under Occupation
Although the settlements are illegal under international law, there are currently 120 settlements housing 460,000 Israeli settlers and 102 outposts. An example of the devastating nature of the settlements is the current geography of the West Bank. Whilst the settlements themselves only use 3% of the land, the intricate series of bypass roads connecting the settlements to Israel which restrict Palestinians further from their own land, results in the settlements monopolizing an actual 40% of the West Bank.
The Wall, sometimes referred to as the Separation Wall, has further confiscated Palestinian land and has changed the geography of the West Bank.
In order to encompass the 56 Israeli settlements closest to the Green Line (the border between Israel and the Occupied Territories from 1967), the Wall has annexed more than 230 km² and 80% of it is being constructed within the West Bank. Only 20% runs along the Green Line.
When it is completed, the Wall will run over 721 km, resulting in 60,500 Palestinians in 42 villages and towns living in a no-man’s-land between the Green Line and the Wall. Some 31,400 Palestinians in 12 villages will be engulfed by the Wall entirely.
“The construction of the wall being built by Israel… in the occupied Palestinian Territory, including in and around East Jerusalem… [is] contrary to international law. Israel is under obligation… to dismantle forthwith the structure… [and] make reparation for all damage caused…”International Court of Justice advisory opinion, July 9, 2004
The situation in Palestine is one of the worst humanitarian disasters with tremendous poverty. Up to 80% of Gazans now depend on food aid from international organizations. In 2007 it was estimated that 46% of Palestinians in the West Bank are living below the poverty line while in Gaza the figure is as high as 80%.
Source: Palestine Monitor
Maps courtesy of Christian Aid, Oct 2004