United Jerusalem = United Eretz israel

Submitted by Fred Schlomka (Israel), Aug 19, 2009 at 03:42

Netanyahu's statement that Jerusalem is an "an undivided city that has no separation according to religion or national affiliation." belies the facts on the ground. Many Arab neighborhoods within the Municipality are now walled Ghettos with checkpoints leading into 'Jerusalem proper". Anata is a good example. Over 65,000 people live behind a 25-foot wall which now completely surrounds the community. This policy of enclosure is being implemented all over the West Bank. Even Bethlehem is now almost completely surrounded by the separation barrier.

In addition to Jerusalem, Israel is applying the right of Jewish residence all over Judea and Samaria, the non-Jews are increasingly confined to enclaves with 'Arab-only' roads connecting them. There is now a de-facto single state from the Jordan to the Mediterranean. Don't worry folks. The idea of two states, one of them free of Jews is now in the dustbin of history. the 500,000 Jewish residents east of the 1948 cease fire line has made sure of it. All that remains is for my government to decide whether the single state will be democratic or not. It's currently looking like not.

Consider this:

Jerusalem has many classes of resident, listed below in order of their civil rights.
1. Jewish citizens of Israel - full civil rights
2. Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel - limited civil rights
3. Palestinian Arab residents of East Jerusalem - no citizenship. only residency permits
4. Palestinian Arab 'West Bank' residents living in walled ghettos within the municipality such as Anata
5. 1948 Palestinian Arab refugees confined to Shuafat refugee camp inside the municipality - now a walled ghetto
6. 1967 Palestinian Arab Refugees confined to Shuafat refugee camp

Although they live within the municipality, #4,5 & 6 require rarely given permits to leave their walled ghettos into Jerusalem 'proper'. Virtually no West Bank Palestinians are allowed into Jerusalem anymore while Israelis are permitted to travel freely, except to enter Area A and B of the Palestinian Authority (43% of the West Bank).

Now is this a mess or what? In my 30+ years here I have witnessed the descent of Israel into a kind of National psychosis. It's a bit like the old adage of puting a frog in water and slowly bring it to a boil. The frog doesn't notice the rise in temperature until it's too late. We may be at boiling point already here, and the frog is about to explode.

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