Last week, Binyamin Netanyahu announced that he had extended the municipality of Jerusalem to include several settlements in the vicinity. This move is nothing new. Since the Zionist movement began to build settlements in Palestine, it has continuously acted to generate de facto realities and to perpetuate them institutionally. The construction of Zionist settlements began in the north and along the central coastal region. It then extended to the area bordering the old city of Arab Jerusalem. It was only after June 1967, however, that the Zionist movement was able to occupy Arab Jerusalem. From then on, it began the process of demolition, evacuation and colonisation intended to achieve a Jewish majority and to transform the architectural and demographic character of the city.
Netanyahu has officially admitted that the current demographic situation in Jerusalem still does not provide for a Jewish majority. Yet one of the determinant factors in the negotiations over Jerusalem in the final status negotiations will be the demographic composition of the city.
Israel is an alien element in a long-established historical and cultural Arab milieu. The contradictions this generates are inherently destructive and impossible to transcend. Netanyahu's recent measure, like all other measures taken by the Israeli leadership, is bound to produce the powerful counter-reactions that are produced whenever an alien body is implanted in a live organism. It is up to the Arabs, therefore, to activate and organise international reactions at all levels.
*This week's Soapbox speaker is an expert on Palestinian affairs and a columnist with Al-Shaab newspaper.
