By BBC News Online's Kathryn Westcott
The
issue of Jewish settlements has long plagued Israel's relations with the Palestinians.
But
before the violence that began last September, deadly attacks were rare. Now,
settlements are increasingly becoming the main flashpoints in the latest conflict.
Palestinians
say their intifada was fuelled by frustration over the expansion of settlements
in the territory they claim for a future independent state.
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They wanted to live not just
in the Land of Israel but as real pioneers
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Israeli rabbi |
Militants
say settlers are legitimate targets, and have singled them out for attack
with increasing regularity.
But
some settlers say the attacks - many of which have resulted in death - have
served to strengthen their resolve to remain in a hostile environment among
the three million Palestinians who live in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Many
have settled on the land for religious reasons, describing themselves as 'pioneers'
claiming the biblical heartland of Judea and Samaria.
Government
subsidies
They
portray themselves as standard-bearers of Judaism and Zionism against a secular
Israel that has lost its way.
Seth
Mandell, father of a teenager who was stoned to death by Palestinian militants
near his settlement in the West Bank, had swapped the middle-class comforts
of his home in Maryland, US, to become a 'pioneer' in the desert.
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Many settlements are isolated |
His
community was made up of those who "wanted to live not just in the Land
of Israel but as real pioneers," a local rabbi said.
Other
settlers have moved simply to take advantage of the subsidies offered by the
government for home purchases.
The
145 settlements dotting the West Bank and Gaza Strip today, contravene international
resolutions banning the movement of settlers into land taken during war.
A
number of these settlements butt up against refugee camps, where Palestinian
families live cheek-by-jowl in squalor.
Violence
The
settlements are protected by security guards and Israeli troops are often
stationed nearby. In some cases, settlers and their children are forced to
enter and leave the settlement in armoured military trucks escorted by soldiers.
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A
recent report by Israel's B'Tselem human rights group found that settler violence
towards Palestinian residents of the territories had increased since the intifada
erupted.
It
says six Arabs were killed by settlers between September and March.
The
organisation adds that in that period, settlers had also stoned Palestinian
cars, damaged property and set fire to a mosque.
The
report also highlights a sharp increase in attacks on settlers by Palestinians.
The
issue of settlements has taken centre stage in the diplomatic arena, with
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon casting aside US and European criticism
of his policies to expand existing settlements.
An
inquiry by a fact-finding committee into the roots of the latest conflict,
under the former US Senator George Mitchell, has recommended that Israel immediately
freeze all building in the West Bank and Gaza.
And
for Palestinians, the most important confidence builder in a recent Jordanian-Egyptian
peace initiative was a call for "total and immediate freeze on all settlement
activities, including those in East Jerusalem."
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Young settlers have never had another
home |
Since
the 1993 Oslo peace accords, the number of Jewish settlers has increased 70%
- from 125,000 to 200,000 - not counting the 200,000 Israelis living in 11
settler quarters in East Jerusalem, according to official figures.
In
the same period, almost 40,000 houses have been built in the settlements,
according to Israel's Dovish movement Peace Now.
'Zionist
heroes'
The
settlement project began after the Arab-Israeli war of 1967, when Israel seized
the West Bank and Gaza territories from Jordan and Egypt.
The
Gush Emunim (Bloc of the Faithful) inspired religious nationalists to found
the settlements.
But
some Israelis question now whether the enclaves are worth defending. Many
view the settlers as an extremist minority.
To
many secular, dovish Israelis, settler ideology precludes the possibility
of reaching a peace agreement with the Palestinians.
But for many hardliners, they are Zionist heroes.
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