In a report published today, B'Tselem and Bimkom state that settlement expansion was the principal consideration in setting the route in many sections of the separation barrier. At a press conference introducing the report, Under the Guise of Security: Routing the Security Barrier to Enable the Expansion of Israeli Settlements in the West Bank , researchers from B'Tselem and Bimkom gave a detailed analysis of existing plans to expand four settlements, and show the clear connection between these plans and the barrier's route.
‘Contrary to the state's claim that the barrier's route was based solely on security considerations, the report's findings indicate that the real considerations underlying determination of the route were not security related, but were a combination of interests: capital, government, and settlers,’ architect Alon Cohen-Lifshitz, Bimkom's planning coordinator, said.
Yehezkel Lein, head of research at B'Tselem, stated: ‘The report shows that, not only were security considerations of secondary importance in many areas, there were places in which security considerations and settlement expansion were in conflict, and the planners chose the route that would include areas intended for expansion on the ‘Israeli’ side, even at the expense of security.’
In their collaboration in preparing the report, the two organizations took advantage of their professional expertise: B'Tselem's experience in documenting human rights violations in the Occupied Territories , and Bimkom's experience in the connection between spatial planning and human rights. In exposing the planning aspects of the separation barrier, the report shows how the barrier brings about spatial change and transfer of land ownership. In giving consideration to settlement-expansion plans, Israel has further violated the human rights of the residents of Palestinian towns and villages situated near those settlements.