The city of Hebron is home to the West Bank's most extreme Jewish settler community, which
includes followers of the late Meir Kahane. Starting in 1979, and with the help
of the Israeli government, this small Jewish community (currently numbering
some 600 adults and children) has imposed itself on the city's 150,000
Palestinian residents. Cloaking themselves with the mantle of genuine Jewish
affection for the city from the time of Abraham, and protected from retaliation
by Israel's army, the Hebron settlers routinely engage in acts of hooliganism,
intimidating the city's Palestinians and destroying their property in a
methodical effort to violently drive them out.
These acts by Hebron's settlers are an
offense to Jewish values and undermine Israel's security. "Hebron Watch"
is Meretz USA's
new feature, designed to spread the word about these settler abuses and to give
you timely information on the situation. We'll also keep you updated on such
initiatives as the petition we went to Defense Minister Peretz calling for the
eviction of Hebron
settlers from their latest usurpation.
While our eyes remain focused on the "big picture" - the need for all
parties to break the deadlock and resume meaningful negotiations on a two-state
solution - we mustn't forget that, day after day, the occupation continues to
take its toll on the Palestinian population of the West
Bank. The situation in Hebron
is emblematic of all that is wrong in the occupied areas, where Israeli
citizens maintain a privileged existence, alongside Palestinians denied
fundamental civil and human rights.
