“In the future I hope to see many more Jews living here in Hebron, and that forces like Hamas will become weaker and Israel will extend its sovereignty not only this city but also across the West Bank. I’m not sure this will happen tomorrow, but in the meantime we will stay here and resist.” Prophetic words in early January from Yishai Fleisher, spokesman for the Jewish settlements in Hebron, destined to become a reality through the peace plan announced in the same month by US president, Donald Trump.

The long-awaited US Deal of the Century to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict sounds like it was written by the Hebron settler’s spokesman. Sure enough, the plan includes among its many points the demilitarisation of Hamas, and the transition of settlements and part of the West Bank under control of the Jewish State. A nightmare for the Palestinians already forced, according to the deputy mayor of Hebron, to live in a situation of extreme hardship among soldiers, checkpoints, expropriation of homes and businesses, with the fear of attacks by settlers, and arbitrary arrests.

Hebron, or al-Khalil in Arabic, is a city like no other. Since 1997 it has been divided into two sectors: H1, controlled by the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) and H2, under Israeli military control and with 800 Jewish settlers living there, protected by about 200 soldiers. Night and day, the military guard the 20 checkpoints scattered across the city centre, hindering Palestinian everyday life. They are unable to walk along streets defined as “sterile” and are forced to go by foot on others, rather than use their own transport. This is always done at the cost of often humiliating checks by Israeli soldiers, convinced they are there to guarantee peace for both Jews and Palestinians in a city where coexistence between the two communities does not seem possible. At least not since 25 February, 1994, when the extremist Jew Baruch Goldstein entered the Cave of the Patriarchs – where Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their wives, Sarah, Rebecca and Leah, are said to be buried – and, wearing a military uniform, opened fire on Muslims gathered in prayer, killing 29 and injuring over one hundred. Goldstein in turn died at the sacred site, beaten by worshippers who survived the massacre, becoming a symbol of evil for Palestinians and a hero for more extremist Jews.

Since that day, Hebron has never been the same. Palestinians residing in the H2 zone have seen their world become more and more contained while gradually expanding for the settlers, albeit within the military borders of the very same area and in full violation of international laws. At least that is how it was until November 2019, when the US administration changed its position towards Israeli settlements, no longer considering them illegal and giving Netanyahu’s government the opportunity to announce a new colonial project in the heart of Hebron. Besides, international laws have never been much of a problem for the expansionist plans of the Jewish state, as Yishai Fleisher recalls, “There are two projects for building new homes: we hope that doing so will increase the number of Jews living in Hebron.” Wearing his kippah, the spokesman for the Hebron settlements speaks with the conviction of someone certain they are right and that they are fulfilling a task assigned to them by a power higher even than the state they answer to. “Our heritage was born in these lands, we have lived here for 3,000 years, despite many trying to send us away, and we will continue to do so. Our presence here is a victory against terrorism.”

The last statement is directed back to its accuser by the deputy mayor of Hebron. Sitting in a black chair, with the Palestinian flag and a portrait of Yasser Arafat behind him, Yousef al Jabari uses harsh words to describe the situation that Hebron’s Palestinian inhabitants endure. “The world is talking about terrorism, but if anyone wants to understand what terrorism really is, they should come here and see how the settlers behave towards us, how they attack people on a daily basis to force them to leave.” However, it seems the worst is yet to come. “In the past two months, settlers have been inspecting the old market and have launched marketing videos to encourage Jews to support their building projects,” continues the deputy mayor. “Their goal is to take the old city in its entirety, but we will oppose it through legal channels.” Since 2017, the historic center of Hebron has been a World Heritage Site so any architectural modification is prohibited, but this is not an issue for Israeli expansionist plans: “International laws mean nothing to them. We want peace, but Israel clearly doesn’t see it that way.”

Meanwhile, life in the city goes on, albeit at a different tempo depending on the area you are located in. Beyond the final H2 zone checkpoint, a completely different Hebron opens up: the sidewalks are full of people walking among fruit and vegetable stalls, shop stands are selling sweets, clothes, shoes and jewellery in a riot of colours, in a lively, carefree atmosphere. H2 feels the complete opposite. Noise from the few cars in the streets echoes between empty buildings, momentarily breaking the veil of silence and tension covering everything, forever keeping you in suspense and waiting for something terrible to happen. The construction of new settlements in the historic center and the content of the US Peace Plan seems to make it no longer a question of if, but when, risking an uprising by the Palestinian population, even reaching a new intifada, as some whisper in the streets of the old city.

L'articolo Hebron amid Palestinian resistance and new settlements proviene da InsideOver.

“The dam is not being built to generate electricity, as the government says. It is being built to wipe out all memory of us, our identity.” Rojan (invented name) is not the only one who, teeth clenched and asking to remain anonymous, explains the Turkish State’s real objective to us. In Turkish Kurdistan nearly everyone is afraid to say what they think about the authorities. They are used to arbitrary arrests and threats on the part of law enforcement. It only takes a split second for a Kurd to end up in prison in this part of the world.

“I was imprisoned for a year and a half in 2012 because I was protesting against the dam,” Ridvan tells us. “When I found myself face to face with the judge I asked him whether he thought it was fair that I should be punished for defending a land and a history that belongs to everyone. He told me that it was not, but I was convicted all the same. Throughout the years many activists and regular citizens have been arrested by the police during rallies, until the government decided to prohibit any kind of protest in the area of Hasankeyf. “We did everything possible, however now we can’t even openly express our dissent. All we can do is express our opinion through the press. It is the only way we can be heard.“

From the top of a low dusty hill overlooking Hasankeyf, Ridavan utters three words which evoke scenarios of death: war over water. “The Tigris crosses through Syria and Iraq, this is the reason why the Turkish State wants to control it. Thanks to the dam and in general to the GAP project, it will be able to stop the flow of water to neighbouring countries whenever it wants. It will use the river as a weapon to threaten them.”. The construction of the Ilisu dam has not only provoked reactions from inhabitants in the area: in Iraq also, a network of associations contrasts the realization of the Turkish mammoth project and advocates a fair distribution of water. Their voices, like those of Hasankeyf, fall on deaf ears.

Control of water resources is not the Government’s only objective. The construction of the Ilisu dam and other similar facilities along the border with Syria acts as an actual barrier, thereby limiting cross-border movement by Turkey’s historic enemy: the Pkk. The Workers Party has a strong presence in Turkish Kurdistan and for decades Ankara has used all means available to try and supress it and undermine its consensus amongst the local population. “Terrorist, terrorist,” is the only word we understand as we listen to a man telling us that his friends were arrested overnight for no particular reason. The English translation makes his discourse no less surreal: if you are an activist and you are a Kurd, you must be a terrorist. If you are involved in politics and a Kurd, you must certainly be a Kurd. If you are a mere shepherd, but you are a Kurd, you might be a terrorist, so it’s best to keep an eye on you. In short, if you are a Kurd you must be a terrorist. End of story.

According to the Government one of the reasons why the inhabitants of the Bakur region support the Pkk can be found in the extreme poverty characterizing the area and which the state policies have helped to generate. Moreover, uncertainty on the times of construction of the dam has hindered any form of investment in the territory: “Many had thought of starting a business in Hasankeyf,” explains the owner of a restaurant, “ But they would always back down, not knowing when and if the village was going to be submerged. If they had invested in tourism, we would be rich by now. According to the inhabitants of Hasankeyf, revitalization of the area should have been carried out through the promotion of its historical and cultural heritage as well as the safeguard of the territory and its traditions. However, the Government is planning something quite different. “They want to wipe out our memory and our identity,” many people tell us, with a mixture of resignation and anger in their voice. By submerging 199 villages and not only uprooting their inhabitants but also to changing their style of life, the State hopes to homogenise the population, transforming the Kurds into Turks. “In war it is customary to target monuments and places of historical importance in order to destroy a people and their memory. They are doing the same with Hasankeyf”.

On 8 October the village was evacuated and put off limits to the public. The sounds of the market no longer echo through the streets, the voices of men sitting in cafés no longer alternate with the tingling of teaspoons, there is no more laughter of children running along the river banks ringing through the air, nor the sound of sheep bleating in the countryside. Every morning, roosters crow to wake up a village condemned to everlasting sleep, destined to vanish for ever in order to satisfy the dreams and ambitions of its Sultan.

© Photographs by Fabio Conti

L'articolo Turkey gets ready for war over water proviene da InsideOver.

L'articolo Hasankeyf: the Kurdish village threatened by Ilisu dam proviene da InsideOver.

L'articolo The environmental impact of the Ilisu dam proviene da InsideOver.