Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Whether you call it a “Security Fence” or a “Separation Wall,” this 300-mile-long struc-
ture has become an icon of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Begun in 2003, a 300-mile-long fortified barrier now separates Israel from the West
Bank. What Israelis call the “Security Fence” or “Anti-Terrorism Barrier,” Palestini-
ans—who consider it an affront to their dignity—call the “Separation Wall,” the
“Apartheid Wall,” or simply “The Wall.”
Israelis explain that the barrier is essential to their national security, and needed to be
built after losing hundreds of its citizens to suicide bombers in the previous decade. And
they claim it's been effective—noting that since its construction, there has been far less
violence.
Palestinians would counter by saying that the wall was built only with the pretense
of security. (Several locals assured me that if anyone really wants to get through the
wall—which is far from finished—it's very easy to do.) They don't credit the wall for the
decline in violence, but say it's because the West Bank, its leaders, its security forces, and
most of its people have all realized that violence is a losing strategy.
Palestinians also view the wall as a land grab designed to hobble a Palestinian state.
The wall generally runs well within Palestinian territory: It's nearly twice as long as the
border it claims to defend—gerrymandered in order to secure Israel settlements, aquifers,
