Seam Zone ( he, מרחב התפר) is a term used to refer to a land area in the
Israeli-occupied West Bank
The Israeli occupation of the West Bank began on 7 June 1967, when Israeli forces captured and occupied the territory (including East Jerusalem), then occupied by Jordan, during the Six-Day War, and continues to the present day. The status of ...
located east of the
Green Line and west of
Israel's
separation barrier
A separation barrier or separation wall is a barrier, wall or fence, constructed to limit the movement of people across a certain line or border, or to separate peoples or cultures. A separation barrier that runs along an internationally recogn ...
, populated largely by Israelis in settlements such as
Alfei Menashe
Alfei Menashe ( he, אַלְפֵי מְנַשֶׁה, ar, ألفي منشيه, , ''lit.'' Thousands of Manasseh) is an Israeli settlement located in the seam zone on the western edge of the central West Bank. Its name is taken from the bible (De ...
,
Ariel,
Beit Arye,
Modi'in Illit
Modi'in Illit ( he, מוֹדִיעִין עִלִּית; ar, موديعين عيليت, lit. "Upper Modi'in") is a Haredi Israeli settlement and city in the West Bank, situated midway between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. Modi'in Illit was grante ...
,
,
Ma'ale Adumim
Ma'ale Adumim ( he, מַעֲלֵה אֲדֻמִּים; ar, معالي أدوميم) is an urban Israeli settlement organized as a city council in the West Bank, seven kilometers () east of Jerusalem. Ma'ale Adumim achieved city status in 1991. ...
,
Beitar Illit
Beitar Illit ( he, בֵּיתָר עִלִּית; officially Betar Illit; "Illit" is pronounced "ee-leet"; ar, بيتار عيليت) is an Haredi Jewish-Israeli settlement organized as a city council in the Gush Etzion settlement bloc, sou ...
and
Efrat
Efrat ( he, אֶפְרָת), or previously officially Efrata ( he, אֶפְרָתָה), is an Israeli settlement in the West Bank, established in 1983 in the Judean Mountains. Efrat is located south of Jerusalem, between Bethlehem and Hebron, ...
.
As of 2006, it was estimated that about 57,000
Palestinians lived in villages located in
enclaves in the seam zone, separated from the rest of the West Bank by the Wall (according to the ICJ Wall Case opinion).
The
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmonizi ...
estimated that if the series of walls, fences, barbed wire and ditches is completed along its planned route, about a third of West Bank Palestinians will be affected—274,000 will be located in enclaves in the seam zone and about 400,000 separated from their fields, jobs, schools and hospitals. The
Supreme Court of Israel ordered changes to the barrier route to reduce the number of people leaving or affected by the seam zone—according to the court verdict the number now stands at 35,000.
[
In July 2006, ]B'Tselem
B'Tselem ( he, בצלם, , " in the image of od) is a Jerusalem-based non-profit organization whose stated goals are to document human rights violations in the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories, combat any denial of the existence of su ...
forecast that 8.5 percent of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem
East Jerusalem (, ; , ) is the sector of Jerusalem that was held by Jordan during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, as opposed to the western sector of the city, West Jerusalem, which was held by Israel.
Jerusalem was envisaged as a separat ...
, would be situated in the seam zone. This area also contains ninety-nine Israeli settlement
Israeli settlements, or Israeli colonies, are civilian communities inhabited by Israeli citizens, overwhelmingly of Jewish ethnicity, built on lands occupied by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War. The international community considers Israeli se ...
s (including twelve in East Jerusalem) in several densely populated areas near the Green Line—areas that Geneva Accord suggested could be transferred to Israel as part of a mutually agreed land-swap with the Palestinians. The Seam Zone is home to some 381,000 Israeli settlers (192,000 in East Jerusalem).
Purpose
According to the Israeli officials, the decision to create the zone involved multiple reasons. Among them was, "The need to create a " buffer zone" by distancing the Barrier from the homes of Israelis living nearby, whether they be in communities in Israel or in the settlements." According to the State Attorney's Office, "this buffer zone is vital to strike against terrorists who are liable to cross the Barrier before carrying out their scheme." Another consideration cited is the need to "defend the forces protecting the barrier by running the route in areas that cannot be controlled opographicallyfrom east of the barrier." It is contended that due to the topography of the area, running the entire Barrier along the Green Line, "would not enable protection of the soldiers patrolling the Barrier, who would find themselves in many cases in a lower topographical position."
Legal structure and permit system
The seam zone is designated as a "closed area" for persons other than Israelis and Jews abroad by way of a military order, the IDF Order Regarding Security Regulations (Judea and Samaria) (No. 378), 5730-1970, Declaration Concerning Closing an Area no. S/2/03 (Seam Zone),[PLO-NAD]
''Israeli Military Order Declaring West Bank Land Between Israel's 1967 Border and the Wall as a ″Closed Zone″''
Accessed January 2014 issued on 2 October 2003. The order stipulates that "no person will enter the seam area and no one will remain there". The regulation does not, however, apply to Israelis. For the purposes of the order, an "Israeli" is defined as "a citizen of the State of Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
, a resident of the State of Israel registered in the population registry in accordance with the Population Registry Law and anyone who is eligible to emigrate to Israel in accordance with the Law of Return."[
The day prior to the issuing of the military order, the ]Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs
The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs ( he, מִשְׂרַד הַחוּץ, translit. ''Misrad HaHutz''; ar, وزارة الخارجية الإسرائيلية) is one of the most important ministries in the Israeli government. The ministry's ...
released a Cabinet Communique which explained that the establishment of the seam zone was of the "utmost importance," citing also the "strong security need for building a security barrier in the 'seam zone' and in the 'Jerusalem envelope'."
Palestinians who live near the seam zone are allowed to enter and stay if they possess a written permit, ''taṣrīḥ'' () in Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walte ...
, authorizing permanent residence.[ Palestinians who are not residents of the seam zone can apply for personal permits provided they have a specific reason. Permits must be applied for in advance. There are 12 different categories of personal permits, including for farmers, employees, business owners and employees of the Palestinian Authority. Specific criteria for the acceptance or refusal of personal permits is not outlined in the regulations.][
Permit holders must apply for special permission if they wish to travel by automobile, bring in goods or stay overnight in the seam zone.][ Even those holding permanent or personal permits are limited to crossing the barrier at the single gate specified in the permit. Personal permits granted, including those issued to farmers who wish to access their land, are often only valid for a limited period.][ Access to the seam zone for permit holders is further limited by the specific operating regimes of the gate in question. Procedures and their opening hours differ from gate to gate and are not always entirely predictable.][
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), in July 2005, 38% of the applications for a permit were denied.] Israeli and Palestinian human rights groups have noted that there is an increasing tendency to grant permits only to registered landowners and their direct descendants. The workforce in the labour-intensive Palestinian agricultural sector is therefore often excluded. Combined with the restrictions faced even by permit holders, there is an increasing tendency for land in the seam zone not to be cultivated. Under Israeli law, land areas not cultivated for three consecutive years can be confiscated and declared "state land". According to the UNOCHA, much of the land in the seam zone has already been declared "state land".
Criticism
Human rights groups, including those in Israel, have challenged the legality of both the separation barrier and the seam zone under international law
International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...
. For example, in a petition to Israel's Supreme Court, the Israeli non-governmental organization Hamoked (Center for the Defense of the Individual) stated that, "the web of the Declaration and the Orders has spun, in the seam zone, a legal apartheid, which is intolerable, illegal and immoral. In other words, the discriminatory and oppressive topographical structure stands upon a shameful normative infrastructure, unprecedented in Israeli law."
Towns and villages in enclaves in the seam zone
As of 2010, the separation barrier is not yet completed in all areas.
According to the official map published by the Israeli government, the following Palestinian towns and villages will lie west of the completed or planned separation barrier:
* Barta'a enclave (north of Tulkarm): includes Barta'a Sharqiya, Umm ar-Rihan
Umm ar-Rehan ( ar, أم الريحان, meaning "Mother of Basil"; also transliterated Umm Rihan or Um al-Rehan) is a Palestinian village of 370 inhabitants located high on the northwestern hills of the Jenin Governorate, from Jenin. It is one of ...
, Khirbet 'Abdallah al-Yunis, Khirbet Ash-Sheikh Sa'eed, Khirbet al-Muntar al-Gharbiya, Khirbet al-Muntar ash-Sharqiyya, and Dhaher al-Malik
* Bir Nabala
Bir Nabala ( ar, بير نبالا; he, ביר נבאלא) is a Palestinian enclave town in the West Bank located eight kilometers northeast of Jerusalem. In mid-year 2006, it had an estimated population of 6,100 residents. Three Bedouin tri ...
enclave (northwest of Jerusalem), also includes Beit Hanina
Beit Hanina ( ar, بيت حنينا , he, בית חנינא) is an Arab Palestinian neighborhood in East Jerusalem. It is on the road to Ramallah, eight kilometers north of central Jerusalem, at an elevation of 780 meters above sea level. Bei ...
, al-Judeira
al-Judeira ( ar, جديره) is a Palestinian village in the Jerusalem Governorate in the central West Bank.
According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the town had a population of 2,121 in 2006.
Toponymy
E. H. Palmer of the P ...
, and al-Jib
Al Jib or al-Jib ( ar, الجيب) is a Palestinian village in the Jerusalem Governorate, located ten kilometers northwest of Jerusalem, in the seam zone of the West Bank. The surrounding lands are home to ''Al Jib Bedouin''. Since 1967, Al Jib has ...
* 9 villages in the Bethlehem
Bethlehem (; ar, بيت لحم ; he, בֵּית לֶחֶם '' '') is a city in the central West Bank, Palestine, about south of Jerusalem. Its population is approximately 25,000,Amara, 1999p. 18.Brynen, 2000p. 202. and it is the capital of ...
area: Battir
Battir ( ar, بتير) is a Palestinian village in the West Bank, 6.4 km west of Bethlehem, and southwest of Jerusalem. In 2017, the village had a population of 4,696. In 2014, Battir was inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage Site as a "wor ...
, Husan
Husan ( ar, حوسان) is a Palestinian town located west of Bethlehem, in the Bethlehem Governorate. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, Husan had a population of 5,511 in 2007.
In the 1945 statistics the population of ...
, Nahalin
Nahalin, also spelled Nahaleen, ( ar, نحالين) is a Palestinian village located in the Bethlehem Governorate to the southwest of Bethlehem in the West Bank. The word ''nahaleen'' is Arabic for those who collect honey from bees. The village was ...
, Wadi Fukin
Wadi Fukin ( ar, وادي فوقين) is a Palestinian village in the West Bank, eight kilometers southwest of Bethlehem in the Bethlehem Governorate. The village, is located on 700 acres of land, between the Green Line and the Israeli West Bank ...
, Al Jab'a, Khirbit Zakariyya, Khirbit Al Ballouta, Khallet 'Afana and Al-Walaja
Al-Walaja ( ar, الولجة) is a Palestinian village in the West Bank, four kilometers northwest of Bethlehem. It is an enclave in the Seam Zone, near the Green Line. Al-Walaja is partly under the jurisdiction of the Bethlehem Governorate a ...
The localities of Khirbet Jabara (near Tulkarm), Azzoun, Ras Tira, Dab'a, Wad Rasha and Arab a-Ramadeen (all near Qalqilya
Qalqilya or Qalqiliya ( ar, قلقيلية, Qalqīlyaḧ) is a Palestinian city in the West Bank which serves as the administrative center of the Qalqilya Governorate of the State of Palestine. In the 2007 census, the city had a population of 41, ...
) were originally planned to be west of the barrier. Subsequently, the Supreme Court of Israel ordered a re-routing of the barrier to place these localities east of the barrier.
Qalqilya and the Hableh
Hableh ( ar, حبله, also transliterated Hable, Habla, Hablah, Hibla, Hiblah) is a Palestinian village located in the Qalqilya Governorate of the State of Palestine, in the northwestern West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of S ...
area (including Ras Atiya and Izbat Jalud) are strictly speaking not enclaves, as narrow strips of land connect them to areas east of the barrier. Periodically the Israeli military employ checkpoints to restrict access to these areas for security reasons.
References
External links
Humanitarian Atlas - West Bank & Gaza Strip
OCHAoPt, December 2011. (95 MiB)
Displaced by the Wall: Forced Displacement as a Result of the West Bank Wall and its Associated Regime
, Badil Resource Center for Palestinian Residency and Refugee Rights and The Norwegian Refugee Council/Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre, September 2006.
A study by Terry Rempel on Palestinian Refugees in the West Bank and Gaza Strip for ForcedMigration.org
* ttp://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?ItemID=4350 Amira Hass article on how Palestinians are now 'illegal residents'
{{Israeli-occupied territories
Israeli West Bank barrier
Geography of the West Bank
Borders of Israel
Borders of the West Bank
Israeli-occupied territories