Ethnic cleansing in the Jordan Valley Land theft, house demolitions, fire zones, nature reserves, deliberately induced thirst

Following the increasingly brutal policy against Palestinians in the Jordan Valley

Today, Friday July 13, 2012 we will hold a solidarity and protest visit against Apartheid in the Jordan Valley. Israeli peace activists will arrive today at Palestinian villages in the Jordan Valley which suffer severe persecution by the military government, which culminated with the confiscation of water trailers. Activists will bring a water trailer in an act of symbolic solidarity and will wave signs reading "Your Honor Edmond Levy – this is occupation!"

Transportation Jerusalem: parking lot at Liberty Bell Park at 11:00. Early registration Yoav - 050-2673467

Tel Aviv: Arlosorov St. Railway Station (near the Sixt parking lot) at 11:00. Early registration: Naomi - 052-2336374 Jacob -050-5733276. Email: manor12@zahav.net.il

We will visit villages suffering from severe water problems. We'll try to bring us a water tankerd and bottled mineral water

Participating organizations: Gush Shalom, Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions, Yesh Gvul, Coalition of Women for Peace

Background: In recent weeks, with the warming of the weather, the Miltary's Government's Civil Administration is resorting to creative and wicked means in order to deny water to the Palestinians in the Jordan Valley and deny them water. Already for many years, Palestinians in the Jordan Valley are not allowed to connect their houses to flowing water – having to bring in water by tankers, at a far higher price than of piped water. Recently, however, a large number of these water tankers were confiscated by the Civil Administration with the excuse of a suspicion of their having been used to commit a crime – i.e. "the theft of water". In this way, hundreds of people were consigned to thirst, among them hundreds of babies, children, elderly and sick – in the hottest time of the year, at the hottest part of the country. Another way to harass the Palestinian residents is an "expulsion for a limited time" in order to make place for military exercises.

Data: The Jordan Valley has an area of over a million and a half dunums, about 30% of the West Bank. Number of Palestinian residents is over 60,000, the number of Israeli settlers is about 10,000. 88% of the land is defined as "Area C" under complete Israeli control. Total land controlled by Israelis - 78%. Most of the water in the valley is being pumped by Mekorot, the Israeli governmental water company. 80% of this water is used by Israelis and only 20% is given to serve the needs of the Palestinians, for both home consumption and agriculture. Average water consumption per capita in the Jordan Valley Israeli settlements - 1,300 liters per person per day, including agriculture. Average water consumption of Palestinians in the West Bank as a whole - 74 liters a day; at Palestinian villages in the Valley - only 20 liters.

Apartheid gets its most perfect form in the Jordan Valley - 53% of the valley has been declared State Land, reserved for exclusive Israeli use. 12% have already been allocated to various settlements, other "state lands" are earmarked for future extension of existing settlements or creation of new ones.

Bureaucratic robbery: the lands of "Absentee" Palestinians had been declared state land, land was seized "for military needs", Jordanian state lands were declared to be Israeli state lands, and so forth. 45% of the land were declared to be "closed military zones", 20% of the land have been declared "nature reserves". Miltary Zoning Laws do not allow construction to the Palestinians, while they allow unlimited construction to the settlers. Palestinian homes are being destroyed, again and again.

There are no international conventions which Israel had signed and which it is not violating. .

See Gideon Levy's article in Ha'aretz/Mondoweiss July 8, 2012 http://mondoweiss.net/2012/07/water-torture-gideon-levy-says-water-is-for-jews-only-in-the-jordan-valley.html

In this solidarity visit we will all protest the induced thirst, the ethnic cleansing, and all the rest.