GAZA
CITY, August 29, 2005 (IslamOnline.net) – Palestinian authorities
and families in the liberated Gaza Strip are gearing up for a legal
battle with the Israeli government to compensate them for 38 years of
occupation and annexation of their land.
"The
legal battle is a priority in the days to come alongside construction
and development efforts," Khan Yunis Governor Hosni Zareb told
IslamOnline.net.
The
Israeli occupation army had annexed some 32 percent of Khan Yunis to
build 11 Jewish settlements.
"I
met with attorneys and rights activists to sue the Israeli government
and force it to compensate the Palestinians for exploiting both public
and private lands for ages," Zareb said.
"A
group of veteran lawyers will lodge a lawsuit in the name of all
Palestinians cities that were harmed by the Israeli occupation of the
Gaza Strip," he added.
The
Israeli pullout from the occupied Gaza Strip, which included the
evacuation of all 21 red-roofed Jewish settlements in the Strip and
four in the northern West Bank, ended on Tuesday, August 23.
Palestinians
fear Israeli Premier Ariel Sharon devised the Gaza disengagement plan
as a ruse to cement Israel's hold on most of the occupied West Bank,
where 246,000 Jewish settlers live heavily guarded among 2.4 million
Palestinians.
Private
Property
Many
Palestinian families are also seeking compensations after Israel had
annexed their lands for decades.
"I
will never give up my right to compensations from Israel for the
annexation of my 15-donum farmland 20 years ago," said Ismail
Al-Samiri, on whose land Israel build a military checkpoint and a
route to serve settlers.
"We
are as much entitled to compensations as Jewish settlers who were paid
handsomely to leave our land."
The
Israeli government has allocated some $200,000 for each settler family
in compensations for the evacuation.
"Israel
must pay the price of years of occupation and damage done to us,"
said Abdul Rahman Al-Abadella, who was stripped of his 300-donum land.
"It
is a patriotic cause that must be fought by all Palestinians," he
added.
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An old Palestinian women defying an Israeli bulldozer scooping up her farmland.
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The
Israeli Knesset (parliament) has attempted to preempt compensation
lawsuits by adopting a law denying the Palestinians the right to seek
reparations for damages done since the outbreak of Al-Aqsa Intifada in
September 2000.
"This
Israeli law does deny the Palestinians the right to seek compensation,
which is a blatant violation of international law," Palestinian
lawyer Adnan Al-Hajjar said.
He
said the Palestinian Authority and human rights groups should join
forces to help the Palestinians get compensations for the demolition
of houses and displacement of thousands of families.
"The
international community also has a responsibility toward the
Palestinians by pressing the Israeli government into paying
compensations given dozens of UN resolutions obliging Tel Aviv to
dismantle its settlements built on occupied lands whose owners are
protected by the Fourth Geneva Convention."
Legal
experts with the Gaza-based Law and Rights Center maintain that civil
and legal responsibility for the crimes and violations committed by
Israel as an occupation power are not affected by the passage of time.
They
believe that the Israeli withdrawal does not invalidate the
Palestinians' right to sue those responsible for war crimes and crimes
against humanity since the start of the Israeli occupation in 1948
before local or international courts.
Gaza
Settlements Facts & Figures
The
Land of Gaza Strip
