Firing Zones in the Jordan Valley

In the Jordan Valley, a strategic West Bank area for Israel both agriculturally and militarily, closed military firing zones are surrounding Bedouin communities, restricting movement and resources while also endangering Palestinian lives.  Last week (7/6/09) I attended a conference on house demolitions, and took a UN led tour of the area.  The Jordan Valley is beautiful but remote; much like the South Hebron hills, interactions between Palestinians, settlers, and the IDF happen largely beyond the public eye.

100% of the Jordan Valley is located in Area C of the West Bank, meaning under full Israeli control, and the Palestinian population is a quarter of what it was before the 1967 war (from approximately 200,000 to 55,000).  Most of this displacement occured during only three months of the war.  Today, there are over 30 settlements. 

The Israeli Defense Forces use the area as a major training zone, and since May of this year, signs reading "Danger, Entrance Forbidden" have been placed at the entrances to every Bedouin village in the Northern Jordan Valley.  Firing in these areas goes on all week, and unexploded weapons are often left behind.

Our tour visited three Bedouin villages, where local spokespeople explained the situations in each village.

Al Jiftlik: the only village in the Jordan Valley where Israel has approved a master plan, or legalized Palestinian homes.  The plan covers 6% of the village, and the 45% of the population living outside of the plan remains subject to displacement.

Al Hadidya: Here, villagers are restricted from accessing the water on their own land, which is suppliled to the nearby Roi settlement.

El Far'a: Families and interest groups are trying to stop military removal from their homes.

A family in El Far'a

An El Far'a house.

Still, the Jordan Valley is an important strategic border for Israel, and border control is essential to any occupation.  It remains to be seen how much sovereignty a hypothetical Palestinian state would have over the Jordan border.