Israel seeks to uproot Palestinians: Analyst

Press TV has conducted an interview with Yousef Al-Helou, a London-based Palestinian journalist, about Israeli forces reportedly demolishing homes belonging to Palestinian Bedouins in several villages in the Negev desert.  

Here is a rough transcription of the interview:

Press TV: In the past we have seen Israel target the Bedouin settlers in the Negev desert. Why them? Why is that particular area so strategically important for Israel?  

Helou: Well this has been an ongoing Israeli policy for many years to empty the land from its indigenous inhabitants - Palestinians of course - whether this land is in the occupied Jerusalem al-Quds or throughout the West Bank in order to make room for more Israeli Jewish settlements across the West Bank to grab more land.

They are worried from the growing demographic level amongst Palestinians. Obviously this policy aims to uproot the Palestinians and force them to leave. And it is not only homes that are being demolished, schools. Can you imagine Israeli Prime Minister himself a few days ago, he gave orders to demolish an Italian-funded school in the occupied Jerusalem al-Quds and that school houses around 150 students and these students are being risked now to be thrown in the streets and not receive education.

That area, the Negev, obviously the Bedouins who reside in these areas and they do not want Palestinians to grow there, it is obviously close to the Dimona nuclear plant and that area is very sensitive to the Israeli side.

Press TV: Now over the past few months at least we have seen an uptake in this practice of mass evacuations, demolitions of homes, as many Palestinians say land grab and changing of the demographics of different areas of Palestinian land, why is it that Israel is continuing to do this? It seems it has become a norm for the international community.  

Helou: Well that is right, they have been given the green light obviously by the American administration. Israel has never been held accountable for its crimes and human rights violations against the Palestinians and obviously the world is busy nowadays with different developments happening around the Palestinian territories, in Syria in particular, and Israel enjoys the culture of impunity and it has been going on for this ethnic cleansing campaign since 1948 and obviously the Palestinians, whether it is in Gaza or the West Bank, somehow there is division amongst the Palestinians. This also plays a negative role.

But in general, obviously Israel has no regards to the human rights for the Palestinians. It is not only demolition; it is building more illegal Israeli settlements despite UN calls to freeze these settlements. The peace process is dead. The one-state or two-state solution is dead. So Israel continues with its aggression, with its   policy of grabbing more land obviously because no one says anything to them.  

Press TV: And how do you assess the role of the Palestinian officials or the PA, so to speak, when it comes to all of this?

Helou: Well obviously the Palestinian leadership is weak and Israel has been doing its best to weaken the Palestinian leadership and to cause more division amongst the Palestinians. The Palestinian side has taken a peaceful role, as they say, to challenge Israeli occupation policies through the United Nations or Security Council but it proved that it is a total failure and the Palestinians in general, they call upon the Palestinian leadership - namely Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas - to take more actions, to be more serious when it comes to Palestinian inalienable rights.    

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