Palæstinensiske bønder lider under, at deres adgang til det livsvigtige vand begrænses, når jødiske bosættere dukker op i de besatte områder og ofte med vold truer palæstinenserne til at holde sig væk.
GENEVA, 19 March 2012: Palestinians have increasingly lost access to water sources in the West Bank as a result of the takeover of springs by Israeli settlers, who have used threats, intimidation and fences to ensure control of water points close to the settlements, according to a new United Nations survey released Monday.
Thirty of the springs were found to be under full settler control, with no Palestinian access to the area, according to the survey carried by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) over the course of last year.
The survey identified a total of 56 water springs close to the Israeli settlements, the majority of which are located in Area C – which represents over 60 per cent of the West Bank where Israel retains control over security, planning and building.
The springs are placed on land parcels recorded by the Israeli Civil Administration as privately owned by Palestinians.
In 22 of the water sources, Palestinians have been deterred (afskrækket) from using the springs by acts of intimidation, threats and violence perpetrated (begået) by Israeli settlers.
And in the eight springs under full settler control, Palestinian access has been prevented by physical obstacles, including the fencing of the spring area, and its “de facto annexation” to the settlement.
“Despite the decline in their yield (afgrøder), springs have remained the single largest water source for irrigation and a significant source for watering livestock,” the report says. To a lesser extent, springs are also a source of water for domestic consumption for Palestinians
The survey points out that the loss of access to springs and adjacent (tilstødende) land reduced the income of affected farmers, who either stop cultivating the land or face a reduction in the productivity of their crops.
In Geneva, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, said human rights challenges in the occupied Palestinian territory are intrinsically (uløseligt) linked to the continuing expansion of Israeli settlements, including violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians.
“The Israeli Government must investigate all incidents of violence against Palestinians and ensure that the perpetrators are held accountable,” Ms. Pillay told the UN Human Rights Council’s general debate on the human rights situation in the occupied Palestinian territory and other occupied Arab territories.
Kilde: FNs Nyhedstjeneste
