Israel Begins Rerouting Fence Bordering Bil’in
Israel’s military began rerouting the security fence bordering the West Bank village of Bil’in.
The tearing down and rebuilding of the fence, in compliance with a 2007 Israeli Supreme Court ruling, began on Sunday. The entire project will cost about $7.5 million. Another $1.5 million will go to help make the land that is made available by moving the fence suitable for use by Palestinian farmers. Prior to tearing down the fence, Israeli soldiers relocated dozens of Palestinian olive trees, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
Moving the fence will give the residents of Bil’in access to about 140 more acres of farmland. They will still remain separated from about 50 more acres of land.
Bil’in has been the site of regular Friday protests, which often turn violent. On June 24, Palestinian protestors smashed into the fence with a bulldozer, despite the fact that the work was scheduled to begin on Sunday.
Leaders of the protests said they will continue despite the move.
The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.
Readers like you make it all possible. We’ve started our Passover Fundraising Drive, and we need 1,800 readers like you to step up to support the Forward by April 21. Members of the Forward board are even matching the first 1,000 gifts, up to $70,000.
This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism, because every dollar goes twice as far.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
