The settlements are Israel's center piece in the the war against the Palestinians. Eyal Weizman exposes them for what they are — a multi-billion dollar investment in a permanent occupation of Palestine and control of the Palestinians.

Lines in the sand
Israeli architect Eyal Weizman won a competition to represent his country at an international conference. But the invitation was abruptly cancelled when it was discovered that his work criticised Israel's illegal settlements in the West Bank. He talks to Esther Addley about the politically loaded nature of planning in the region.

But how can a small town full of civilians infringe people's human rights? "If you look at the layout of settlements, they are always built on hilltops. People know that, but they may not realise that they also are built in rings, over the summit, in a way that generates territorial surveillance in all directions. I began to understand that these are urban-scale optical devices, and every design move in them is calculated to enhance vision." Only by looking at the original architectural plans, he argues, would one register something so simple as the fact that each house is built with its bedrooms innermost, its living quarters facing the vista.

"The planners always speak about the view as pastoral and biblical, almost in a romantic sense. They speak about the terraces and olive groves and stone houses, which are obviously created for them by the Palestinians. The Palestinians are almost like the stage workers who create a set, but they then have to disappear when the lights come on." But it is not only the Palestinians' rights who are infringed, he argues. "The army also uses the eyes of the civilian settlers, almost hijacks them, to generate territorial surveillance. There is almost an illegal use of civilians to generate supervision of another part of the civilian population."
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The study that is the basis for this: The Politics of Verticality

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Professionals in Israel
A major Berlin exhibition on the architectural politics of Israel’s West Bank settlements has just been abruptly cancelled by the Israeli Association of United Architects. Paul Hilder tells a story of political censorship, intellectual complicity with power – and the ethical responsibility of true professionals.

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Sharon's other tactic (he is the father of the settlements) is to answer any Palestinian effort towards de-escalation of the violence with Israeli escalation of the violence.

The Meaning of the Gaza Bombing

Alex Fishman was reporting that (a) last October, Hamas had under pressure from the Palestinian Authority agreed to stop suicide bombings inside Israel proper; (b) the Israeli government knew this; (c) it discussed whether to kill a Hamas leader for his involvement in planning such terrorist bombings; (d) it knew if it did so the cease-fire agreement would lapse; (e) if so, there would be more suicide attacks against Israelis; and (f) the authorities probably could not prevent all such efforts, so at least one would succeed.

Fishman was right. Twenty-five Israelis died.

Why do I think it is important for us to know this history?

Because on MONDAY just this past week, according to a detailed report in the London Times of July 24, the "militant" factions besides Hamas that have joined in terror attacks during the last few months had agreed to issue a formal statement abandoning all attacks against Israeli civilians. And as those discussions went forward, on Monday, the chief of Hamas, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, announced publicly that Hamas was considering entering into a cease-fire if Israeli troops left the Palestinian cities and villages they have recently reoccupied.

These discussions, and the public announcement by Hamas, were known to the Israeli authorities.

THE VERY NIGHT OF THE DAY on which Hamas made its public statement and the broader discussions achieved agreement on a cease-fire by other groups, came the midnight bombing of the Gaza apartment complex that killed Sheikh Salah Shehada and 14 others, mainly children and women.
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And let's not forget that the Saudi peace initiative was answered with the reoccupation of the West Bank.

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Getting away with murder: Israeli impunity triumphs again

Shame on A World Where Sharon is A Free Man

Palestinian Cease-Fire Was in Works Before Israeli Strike

The politics of murder