Renegade Jewish Settlers | Journeyman Pictures

Transcript

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(rhythmic music)

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(twangy guitar music)

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- We've just arrived in Tel Aviv.

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We're here on the beach, it's really nice.

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It's deceptively nice,

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because 20 miles that

way is the West Bank,

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which Israel has been

occupying since 1967.

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And the reason we're

interested in the West Bank

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is because the other thing that Israel has

been doing there is building settlements.

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So we're gonna head over there

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and find out what that's like.

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(speaking foreign language)

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- Israel conquered the West

Bank and East Jerusalem in 1967,

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after three Arab nations

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battled the newly minted Jewish

state in the Six Days War.

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Israel was only 20 years old at the time

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and its victory

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was hailed as a David

versus Goliath triumph.

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A lot of water's passed

under the bridge since then,

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and what was supposed to have

been a temporary occupation

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of the Palestinian territories

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has turned into four and

a half decades of misery

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for the Arab residents in the West Bank.

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Aside from the fact that the

West Bank is criss-crossed

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with barbed wire, walls,

and military checkpoints,

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over 300,000 Israelis have

taken it upon themselves

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to settle what was supposed to be

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the future Palestinian state.

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According to international law,

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the settlements are totally illegal.

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They represent a colonization of the lands

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that are slated for

hand-over to the Palestinians

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under an agreement that both Israel

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and the Palestinians signed in 1993.

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As a result, the peace process

has ground to a halt.

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And the much-lauded two-state solution

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is looking less likely than ever before.

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(praying and chanting)

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I wanted to find out who the settlers were

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and what motivated them to pick up sticks

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and move across the green line

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to become the most notorious squatters

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the world has ever known.

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But first,

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I decided to get some

counter-terrorism training

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in a West Bank gun range,

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with a member of Israel's Special Forces.

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- Ready!

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- Just in case.

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We're on a firing range in a

settlement in the West Bank

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and these guys behind me are civilians

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training to do border security.

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And they've got some

pretty mean-looking guns.

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- Is this a safe gun?

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No such thing as a safe gun.

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Guns were made for killing.

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(shouting)

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(gunshots popping)

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You're standing at the

entrance to the synagogue.

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Inside, there's a terror attack happening.

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Okay, I want you to imagine.

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You standing in ready

position, pointing your weapon

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inside the synagogue, trying

to take care of the terrorists.

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Remember how we defined counter-terrorism,

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as combat in a civilian area.

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We don't want to hurt civilians.

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We have to protect them, correct?

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This not an Xbox, it's not games.

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We don't push a reset button

and then you get a new life.

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There's real bullets outside,

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there's a real possibility

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that I'll never see my kids again.

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Ah!

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Simon's scared of me.

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- No shit.

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I was starting to think this guy's job

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was just to scare the crap out of anyone

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who showed up for the training.

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- Go, fight!

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- Turns out, I wasn't the only who

thought it would be a good idea

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to get some training.

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A Canadian woman we nicknamed Sarah Connor

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had brought her whole family along

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for the fear-fest.

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Doesn't hurt to know how to

use an AK, though, right?

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And for what it's worth,

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her daughter turned out to

be a pretty good marksman.

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(gunshots booming)

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- Well, I hit it twice.

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Didn't do as well as the 10-year-old girl.

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- Not bad.

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- Do you think it's important for

everybody who moves to Israel

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to have this kind of

counter-terrorism training?

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- Look, counter-terrorism training, I

don't think it's important for everyone

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unless you encounter terrorists.

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But to have an awareness of terrorism...

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- So why do so many

people carry around guns?

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- I don't, I don't know.

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Maybe to feel safe.

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I think, people think that,

oh, I've got a gun at home,

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and if I wake up and there's a terrorist,

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I could take care of my family.

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Maybe that's what's going

through their minds.

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- I discovered that it

was easy for a settler

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to get a gun license in the West Bank.

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All they had to do was qualify

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at a shooting range like this one.

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The Palestinians living in the same area

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are never packing, because

Israel doesn't allow it.

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It turned out our trainer,

Steve, was himself a settler,

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who'd moved into the West

Bank from South Africa.

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When we arrived at his settlement,

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I was surprised to see it look

more like an American suburb

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than an outpost in a hostile territory.

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The community that you live in was built

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in the particular place that it was built

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because of the historic

significance of the place?

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- Yeah, most of the little areas here,

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they've actually found signs of

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ancient Jewish settlement there.

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We feel that we're

reviving the past, kind of.

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- Right.

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So you're saying, your settlement

is right on the right here

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and some fields that are used by

Palestinians are on the left.

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Are there any sort of

confrontations between

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the people working in these fields

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and people from your settlement?

- Not often.

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Occasionally I've been

called in to what we call,

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it's called a hadira,

that's an infiltration.

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I've caught, on a few occasions,

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Arabs that have

infiltrated the settlement.

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They've come to steal.

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In my mind, also, I think

it's quite a clever way

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for them to gather information,

see how quickly we react,

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by taking all this information in.

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So we've got to be really alert.

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- Do you ever worry about your kids,

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that they could get hurt?

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(Steve sighing)

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- I think every parent

worries about their kids.

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- But do you ever question your decision

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to bring them out here--

- No, no.

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- In such close proximity--

- No, no.

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- To people who aren't very

happy with your presence?

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- No, I mean, I'll tell you,

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that--

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- That's not something you think about.

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- That's not something I think about.

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- It turns out, the Israeli

state has given his settlement,

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and many others like it, its full backing.

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But like most settlements, it

hadn't started out this way.

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It was once an encampment

that was considered illegal,

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even by Israel.

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But over the years, the

settlers have learned

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that if they squat a site in

the West Bank long enough,

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Israel will give them its

approval, its infrastructure,

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and its security.

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You don't feel that coming here

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would provoke your Arab

neighbors, though, into violence?

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- I don't see why it should.

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Look, again, what I'm saying is that

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I don't think it's right,

taking other people's land.

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I don't think it's right for me to,

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these guys are working hard.

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They've been working these fields

now for maybe two generations.

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You should just know, that's maximum.

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When we're talking about Palestinian

people, we're maximum talking about

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maybe one and a half to two generations.

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The Jewish people have

been here for 5,000 years.

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This dates back another 3,000 years ago

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that this was active and used.

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We're not just a fabrication that this is,

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oh, we want this place.

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I understand that they were

here for whatever reasons,

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we were exiled out of Israel,

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but we were given the

opportunity to come back.

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- Now this was an incredible

fabrication on Steve's part.

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The notion that the Palestinians

had only lived on this land

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for two generations was totally false.

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But the idea that Jews

had a historic claim

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to the West Bank's territories

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that trumped any Palestinian claims

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was one I'd hear over and

over in the next few days,

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and turned out to be a major

part of the settler ideology

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that ran directly counter to

the two-state solution plan.

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Steve was an interesting guy.

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Our shooting instructor is also a settler,

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and somehow he made being

a commando in the West Bank

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seem almost normal.

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But the settlement he's

from is really established,

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and we want to find places that are newer,

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where people are

literally on an encampment

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at the top of a hill and

starting a brand-new settlement.

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(upbeat music)

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We headed out in the morning to see

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if we could find some Jewish

outposts in the West Bank,

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ones that were small,

unestablished, and unauthorized.

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We decided to drive to Havat Gilad,

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which is known for having clashed

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with both its Palestinian neighbors

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as well as the Israeli

Police force and the Army.

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Israel has a love-hate

relationship with the settlers.

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Nearly 40% of Israelis think the settlers

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shouldn't be in the West

Bank, but their views

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have never translated

into government policy.

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And many blame this on the influence

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of extremist religious parties

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who believe that the

Palestinian territories

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were promised to them by God.

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Israel's prime minister says

he wants a two-state solution,

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but he's never actually said he

wants to evacuate the settlements.

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And although he recently broke free

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of a coalition with the religious parties,

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he's still a strong supporter

of the settlement enterprise.

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(speaking foreign language)

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- There is no

government that supports

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or will support settlements

more than the government I lead.

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- This means Palestinians can expect

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more settler expansion and more

attention with the Israelis

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and their army.

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And on our way to the settlement,

we noticed a bit of a commotion

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involving a bunch of Palestinians

and some Israeli soldiers.

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We saw off to the side of the

road this group of Palestinians,

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but they're being watched over

by Israeli security forces.

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So we're wondering what's going on here.

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- It turns out, Israel

had mobilized its army

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to allow an Israeli archaeological

team to dig up a field.

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The Palestinian villagers weren't happy

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because they saw it as the first step

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in the expansion of a nearby settlement.

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This is totally crazy because

this is an archaeological dig

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being carried out by

the Israeli authorities

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in the West Bank.

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And this is how many soldiers you need

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in order to protect this

archaeological excavation.

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But what's even more nuts

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is that the Palestinians

are doing the manual labor.

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So the Israelis have hired Palestinians

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to do an illegal excavation in

the Palestinian territories.

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- What is this place?

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What is the significance of this site?

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But they're on the wrong

side of the green line

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for doing archaeological digs.

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No?

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I mean I'm just asking if that's correct.

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- I don't know, I don't know.

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- I don't know, I don't know.

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- No picture today.

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- So those soldiers really didn't

want me to talk to the Palestinians,

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who are apparently upset

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about this archaeological

dig taking place here.

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The reason they're upset is because

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a lot of times when the Israelis

do an archaeological dig,

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they then build a sort of memorial

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around any Jewish

artifacts that they find,

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and it becomes a place of pilgrimage

for the settlers who come here.

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And then, bit by bit,

the Palestinians feel

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that they're losing even more land.

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It turns out the guy who

was leading the excavation,

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and who casually shrugged

us off, was Michael Ben-Ari,

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an ultra-right member

of Israel's parliament

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who lived in the

settlement across the road.

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And Ben-Ari had a history

of questionable behavior.

264

00:11:53,932 --> 00:11:56,861

Besides openly advocating for

the departure of Palestinians

265

00:11:56,861 --> 00:11:58,194

from the West Bank,

266

00:11:58,194 --> 00:12:00,932

the US refused to grant

him a visitor's visa

267

00:12:00,932 --> 00:12:02,103

because he'd been included

268

00:12:02,103 --> 00:12:04,684

on the State Department's

Terrorist Watch List.

269

00:12:04,684 --> 00:12:07,494

Oh, and he's also been known

to post heartwarming photos

270

00:12:07,494 --> 00:12:09,776

on his Facebook page, like this one,

271

00:12:09,776 --> 00:12:12,666

which shows him and a

buddy relaxing on a couch

272

00:12:12,666 --> 00:12:14,585

confiscated from an Arab family

273

00:12:14,585 --> 00:12:17,697

that had just been

evicted from their home.

274

00:12:17,697 --> 00:12:19,861

Unfortunately, the

soldiers were pressuring us

275

00:12:19,861 --> 00:12:21,122

to leave the site.

276

00:12:21,122 --> 00:12:22,589

So we got back on the road

277

00:12:22,589 --> 00:12:24,967

and continued our trek to Havat Gilad,

278

00:12:24,967 --> 00:12:27,693

which is known for attracting

its own set of problems.

279

00:12:27,693 --> 00:12:29,944

Besides it being a hot spot for violence,

280

00:12:29,944 --> 00:12:32,697

Israel is known to come

in and routinely bulldoze

281

00:12:32,697 --> 00:12:34,443

these illegal outposts.

282

00:12:34,443 --> 00:12:37,125

But the settlers are always

more than happy to rebuild.

283

00:12:37,125 --> 00:12:40,519

So we were curious to see

what shape the place was in.

284

00:12:40,519 --> 00:12:42,790

When we arrived, we

came upon two teenagers

285

00:12:42,790 --> 00:12:46,540

who were building a

house from the ground up.

286

00:12:47,815 --> 00:12:50,353

(hammer banging)

287

00:12:50,353 --> 00:12:53,502

There to tell us about their

lives were Simcha and Yosef,

288

00:12:53,502 --> 00:12:55,456

a pair of teenagers who were busy doing

289

00:12:55,456 --> 00:12:57,730

what settlers in the area did best,

290

00:12:57,730 --> 00:13:00,563

building a house without a permit.

291

00:13:01,613 --> 00:13:04,742

When they hear somebody say

the West Bank, they think that

292

00:13:04,742 --> 00:13:06,522

it's a war zone, it's dangerous.

293

00:13:06,522 --> 00:13:09,769

You're living right next

door to Arabic villages.

294

00:13:09,769 --> 00:13:12,325

Are you fearful for your

own safety, moving out here?

295

00:13:12,325 --> 00:13:14,135

There's no fence around

this settlement at all.

296

00:13:14,160 --> 00:13:15,783

You're kind of exposed.

297

00:13:15,783 --> 00:13:17,858

- I don't feel any,

298

00:13:17,858 --> 00:13:19,247

like I'm afraid.

299

00:13:19,247 --> 00:13:20,580

I have God here.

300

00:13:21,849 --> 00:13:23,184

So.

301

00:13:26,894 --> 00:13:28,831

You getting used to it.

302

00:13:28,831 --> 00:13:31,134

- But can you even hear the call to prayer

303

00:13:31,159 --> 00:13:33,527

going now from the nearby Arabic town?

304

00:13:34,422 --> 00:13:36,089

- Actually annoying.

305

00:13:37,011 --> 00:13:39,052

- Simcha didn't seem to have much sympathy

306

00:13:39,052 --> 00:13:41,941

for his Palestinian

neighbors or their culture.

307

00:13:41,941 --> 00:13:43,820

But then again, he was kind of pissed

308

00:13:43,820 --> 00:13:45,439

because a couple of weeks ago

309

00:13:45,439 --> 00:13:47,406

they'd apparently burned down a house

310

00:13:47,431 --> 00:13:50,251

he'd helped build, and killed his dog.

311

00:13:51,187 --> 00:13:54,321

- Came in the morning,

and they saw nobody here.

312

00:13:54,321 --> 00:13:57,274

And then came two guys

and just burned the house.

313

00:13:57,274 --> 00:14:00,322

So after, all of our guys,

they went to the village

314

00:14:00,322 --> 00:14:04,489

and start fighting there,

and it was a big mess, yeah.

315

00:14:06,325 --> 00:14:07,642

- From our guys?

316

00:14:07,642 --> 00:14:09,017

No.

317

00:14:09,744 --> 00:14:11,327

- I think so, yeah.

318

00:14:15,495 --> 00:14:17,995

- Yeah, probably, they afraid.

319

00:14:20,474 --> 00:14:22,583

- We don't meet girls.

320

00:14:22,583 --> 00:14:24,833

That's one of the problems.

321

00:14:28,026 --> 00:14:31,499

- Lonely, no, I never get lonely.

322

00:14:31,499 --> 00:14:33,832

(hammering)

323

00:14:35,450 --> 00:14:38,033

(guitar music)

324

00:15:00,360 --> 00:15:02,328

- So you're gonna start a settlement band?

325

00:15:02,328 --> 00:15:03,720

- Yeah.

326

00:15:03,720 --> 00:15:06,275

We're gonna just make Jewish blues,

327

00:15:06,275 --> 00:15:09,025

some kind of something like that.

328

00:15:11,416 --> 00:15:12,650

- Kind of.

329

00:15:15,917 --> 00:15:17,244

- Ah, yeah.

330

00:15:21,002 --> 00:15:23,585

(guitar music)

331

00:15:28,203 --> 00:15:30,680

- Simcha struck

me as an oddly normal teen

332

00:15:30,680 --> 00:15:33,744

for someone who is taking

part in a blatant land grab.

333

00:15:33,744 --> 00:15:35,821

But the settlers don't see it that way.

334

00:15:35,821 --> 00:15:39,096

In their view, God had

promised the Jews this land.

335

00:15:39,096 --> 00:15:40,179

End of story.

336

00:15:54,533 --> 00:15:57,450

- What do you think the Arabs want?

337

00:16:31,281 --> 00:16:32,961

- Does it make you angry that most of the

338

00:16:32,961 --> 00:16:35,671

international community

agrees with the Palestinians

339

00:16:35,671 --> 00:16:39,171

in that you shouldn't be in the West Bank?

340

00:16:50,480 --> 00:16:53,542

- Have you personally had any

problems with Israeli police?

341

00:16:58,135 --> 00:17:00,872

(plangent Middle Eastern music)

342

00:17:00,872 --> 00:17:03,355

- Simcha and I left Yosef

to do some construction

343

00:17:03,380 --> 00:17:06,266

while we took a stroll

around the settlement.

344

00:17:06,266 --> 00:17:08,545

I suppose if you do like

everybody else here,

345

00:17:08,570 --> 00:17:10,974

you have to start your own family soon.

346

00:17:10,999 --> 00:17:12,085

- Yeah.

347

00:17:12,085 --> 00:17:15,306

- But you also have to go to the

military, so how do you do both?

348

00:17:15,331 --> 00:17:17,748

- I do military and I'm done.

349

00:17:18,978 --> 00:17:20,739

- But you want to go to the army?

350

00:17:20,739 --> 00:17:22,551

- Yeah, I want to go the army, yeah.

351

00:17:22,551 --> 00:17:25,047

- Can you imagine a situation

where you'd be part of a unit

352

00:17:25,072 --> 00:17:28,466

that was ordered to provide

security for a demolition?

353

00:17:28,466 --> 00:17:30,105

- Never.

354

00:17:31,890 --> 00:17:33,319

No.

355

00:17:33,319 --> 00:17:37,486

- What about the demolition

of a Palestinian's house?

356

00:17:38,555 --> 00:17:40,537

- I'll be happy to do it.

357

00:17:40,537 --> 00:17:42,370

That will be my dream.

358

00:17:43,333 --> 00:17:45,293

- Simcha introduced me to Yair,

359

00:17:45,293 --> 00:17:48,903

a 19-year-old who was about

to enlist in the army.

360

00:17:48,903 --> 00:17:51,446

Yair's house had recently

been destroyed by the police,

361

00:17:51,446 --> 00:17:53,562

and he seemed even more

vocally opinionated

362

00:17:53,562 --> 00:17:56,087

than both Yosef and Simcha.

363

00:17:56,087 --> 00:17:58,916

I wonder if you tried to look at it

364

00:17:58,916 --> 00:18:01,517

from the perspective of the Palestinians.

365

00:18:01,517 --> 00:18:03,513

Their fathers were here,

their grandfathers were

366

00:18:03,538 --> 00:18:05,631

here, and their

great-great-grandfathers were here.

367

00:18:05,656 --> 00:18:08,517

They don't know any other country.

- They do.

368

00:18:08,542 --> 00:18:10,587

- They might say, where

are we supposed to go?

369

00:18:10,612 --> 00:18:13,099

- You know how many

countries of Arab there is?

370

00:18:13,099 --> 00:18:14,596

22.

371

00:18:14,596 --> 00:18:15,596

We have one.

372

00:18:16,793 --> 00:18:18,432

And now we have half of it.

373

00:18:18,432 --> 00:18:19,662

Not even all of it.

374

00:18:19,662 --> 00:18:21,190

And the little piece we have,

375

00:18:21,190 --> 00:18:23,799

they want to steal from us again.

376

00:18:23,799 --> 00:18:25,875

- Would it be really stupid of me to say

377

00:18:25,900 --> 00:18:28,714

that the Canaanites

were here before Israel?

378

00:18:28,714 --> 00:18:31,088

Maybe their descendants can claim to have

379

00:18:31,113 --> 00:18:32,340

more rights than Jews.

380

00:18:32,340 --> 00:18:34,987

- You see the Canaanim now?

381

00:18:34,987 --> 00:18:36,713

You see them anywhere?

382

00:18:36,713 --> 00:18:38,540

- No, I'm just trying to make a point

383

00:18:38,565 --> 00:18:40,970

that history moves in many

places, and many different ways.

384

00:18:40,970 --> 00:18:42,058

- History moves.

385

00:18:42,058 --> 00:18:45,796

Again, the Jewish people

didn't move a millimeter.

386

00:18:45,796 --> 00:18:49,225

- But even Israel says

this isn't your property.

387

00:18:49,250 --> 00:18:53,347

- I feel sorry for the

government that they feel

388

00:18:53,347 --> 00:18:56,108

that they still in Poland and Germany.

389

00:18:56,108 --> 00:18:58,508

And they think, oy, Obama.

390

00:18:58,508 --> 00:19:00,307

Oy, we are afraid of Obama.

391

00:19:00,307 --> 00:19:02,337

We are afraid of all

the rest of the world.

392

00:19:02,337 --> 00:19:04,892

We are not in 1945 anymore. That's it.

393

00:19:04,917 --> 00:19:07,692

No Jew is going into the

burning places anymore.

394

00:19:07,692 --> 00:19:09,828

That's it.

Finish, done.

395

00:19:09,828 --> 00:19:11,569

- Is it true that

settlers sometimes attack

396

00:19:11,569 --> 00:19:13,899

a Palestinian village as a reprisal

397

00:19:13,899 --> 00:19:18,704

against the Israeli police

destroying a settler's house?

398

00:19:18,704 --> 00:19:20,435

- I heard about those things,

399

00:19:20,435 --> 00:19:23,857

but as a settler, I never did that.

400

00:19:23,857 --> 00:19:25,109

I never saw that.

401

00:19:25,109 --> 00:19:27,276

I have no idea what they speaking about.

402

00:19:27,276 --> 00:19:30,867

I believe that it's a

manipulation of the media.

403

00:19:30,867 --> 00:19:33,289

Every media guy has a agenda.

404

00:19:33,289 --> 00:19:34,820

My father always says that

405

00:19:34,820 --> 00:19:38,265

the only true thing in

the newspaper is the date.

406

00:19:38,265 --> 00:19:40,496

That's it.

This is my ideology.

407

00:19:40,496 --> 00:19:41,540

This is what I believe in.

408

00:19:41,540 --> 00:19:43,656

I believe that the Israeli people

409

00:19:43,656 --> 00:19:46,594

should live

anywhere in Israel.

410

00:19:48,637 --> 00:19:51,293

- I headed back to meet

with Simcha and Yosef,

411

00:19:51,293 --> 00:19:52,998

who'd taken a break from construction,

412

00:19:52,998 --> 00:19:54,303

and were ordering a pizza

413

00:19:54,303 --> 00:19:57,195

from a nearby settlement called Kedumim.

414

00:19:57,195 --> 00:20:00,692

The goal for Havat Gilad and

Kedumim is to eventually merge

415

00:20:00,692 --> 00:20:03,130

and form a settlement

bloc, which would, in turn,

416

00:20:03,130 --> 00:20:07,037

separate the Palestinian

villages on either side of it.

417

00:20:07,037 --> 00:20:09,841

In the meantime, I headed back to Tel Aviv

418

00:20:09,841 --> 00:20:13,674

across the Green Line,

and into Israel proper.

419

00:20:15,947 --> 00:20:18,530

(upbeat music)

420

00:20:22,838 --> 00:20:25,022

After spending the night in Tel Aviv,

421

00:20:25,022 --> 00:20:27,082

it was time to head back to the West Bank

422

00:20:27,082 --> 00:20:29,224

for a Palestinian protest,

423

00:20:29,224 --> 00:20:31,271

which was only about 30 miles away,

424

00:20:31,271 --> 00:20:34,914

but things are never

as easy as they sound.

425

00:20:34,914 --> 00:20:36,842

In addition to all the usual barriers

426

00:20:36,842 --> 00:20:39,755

between Israel and the

Palestinian territories,

427

00:20:39,755 --> 00:20:42,417

the heavens had conspired

to shut down traffic

428

00:20:42,417 --> 00:20:45,638

across Tel Aviv for the annual marathon.

429

00:20:45,638 --> 00:20:47,867

This was a celebration of fitness

430

00:20:47,867 --> 00:20:49,792

that I hadn't prepared for.

431

00:20:49,792 --> 00:20:51,944

(speaking foreign language)

432

00:20:51,944 --> 00:20:54,254

It's Friday morning in Tel Aviv.

433

00:20:54,254 --> 00:20:57,879

We're going to the West

Bank where it's Land Day,

434

00:20:57,879 --> 00:21:01,640

and all of Palestine

celebrates their land.

435

00:21:01,640 --> 00:21:03,026

But it's also an occasion

436

00:21:03,026 --> 00:21:04,978

when they clash with Israeli troops,

437

00:21:04,978 --> 00:21:07,542

so we're gonna see what that vibe is like.

438

00:21:07,542 --> 00:21:11,772

We're having to carry all of our stuff

across the entire city, and frankly,

439

00:21:11,772 --> 00:21:14,022

it's really pissing me off.

440

00:21:16,461 --> 00:21:18,508

This is the Qalandia checkpoint.

441

00:21:18,508 --> 00:21:21,380

There's tons of soldiers and

police here today because

442

00:21:21,380 --> 00:21:24,129

they're expecting a confrontation

443

00:21:24,129 --> 00:21:27,429

with the Palestinian demonstrators.

444

00:21:27,429 --> 00:21:30,365

We're going across the

checkpoint while we can,

445

00:21:30,365 --> 00:21:32,486

because once the trouble starts,

446

00:21:32,486 --> 00:21:34,736

they're gonna shut it down.

447

00:21:36,760 --> 00:21:38,848

(gate clanking)

448

00:21:38,848 --> 00:21:40,408

Oh, man, not another one.

449

00:21:40,408 --> 00:21:42,741

You've got to be kidding me.

450

00:21:44,406 --> 00:21:46,500

(loudspeaker echoing)

451

00:21:46,500 --> 00:21:49,411

Okay, now I'm pretty sure we're here.

452

00:21:49,411 --> 00:21:51,740

Three hours after we

set out from Tel Aviv,

453

00:21:51,740 --> 00:21:55,965

we were finally in the seat of the

Palestinian Authority, Ramallah.

454

00:21:57,107 --> 00:21:58,847

We met Tawfiq Haddad,

455

00:21:58,847 --> 00:22:00,798

a Palestinian-American who'd agreed

456

00:22:00,798 --> 00:22:04,718

to take us on a sporting

event of a different kind.

457

00:22:04,718 --> 00:22:07,385

(siren wailing)

458

00:22:10,227 --> 00:22:12,418

Palestinians were marking Land Day,

459

00:22:12,418 --> 00:22:14,718

an annual event that draws

attention to the fact

460

00:22:14,718 --> 00:22:17,181

that the territory they

control keeps shrinking

461

00:22:17,181 --> 00:22:19,159

and shrinking

in inverse proportion

462

00:22:19,159 --> 00:22:23,965

to the amount of land controlled

by Israel and its settlers.

463

00:22:23,965 --> 00:22:26,275

- Land Day for the Palestinians

is a catastrophe day.

464

00:22:26,300 --> 00:22:28,315

When the Palestinian land has been taken,

465

00:22:28,340 --> 00:22:30,429

Palestinians became

refugees around the world

466

00:22:30,429 --> 00:22:32,121

because the Zionists

has been expelled them

467

00:22:32,121 --> 00:22:33,895

from their land in '48.

468

00:22:33,895 --> 00:22:36,493

We are still, until now, suffering from,

469

00:22:36,493 --> 00:22:38,978

in the diaspora,

from this refugee problem.

470

00:22:38,978 --> 00:22:40,611

They want to keep

their occupation and

471

00:22:40,636 --> 00:22:42,747

colonization forever. This

is not going to happen.

472

00:22:42,747 --> 00:22:44,055

- But their politicians say

473

00:22:44,055 --> 00:22:46,186

they want to have a two-state solution.

474

00:22:46,186 --> 00:22:47,572

- This is lip services.

475

00:22:47,572 --> 00:22:49,160

If you really, as a politician,

476

00:22:49,160 --> 00:22:51,402

want two-state solution,

prove it in the ground.

477

00:22:51,402 --> 00:22:52,711

Stop your settlements.

478

00:22:52,711 --> 00:22:55,431

Take out your settlers from

the West Bank and Jerusalem,

479

00:22:55,431 --> 00:22:56,776

and stop demolishing the houses

480

00:22:56,776 --> 00:22:59,964

and the ethnic cleansing

and confiscating the land.

481

00:22:59,964 --> 00:23:01,627

Stop the wall that you are building.

482

00:23:01,627 --> 00:23:05,794

Then we can believe that

you want two-state solution.

483

00:23:14,237 --> 00:23:15,535

- The protests were taking place

484

00:23:15,535 --> 00:23:19,016

at the Qalandia checkpoint that

I'd crossed through earlier.

485

00:23:19,016 --> 00:23:22,678

And Israel's security forces

were determined not to let any

486

00:23:22,678 --> 00:23:24,717

of the Palestinians near it.

487

00:23:24,717 --> 00:23:26,513

(siren wailing)

(horns honking)

488

00:23:26,513 --> 00:23:28,788

Meanwhile, a local cell

phone company decided

489

00:23:28,788 --> 00:23:31,246

that the madness erupting all around

490

00:23:31,246 --> 00:23:34,781

was the perfect place to

advertise its services.

491

00:23:34,781 --> 00:23:37,582

So the funny thing is while

this protest is going on,

492

00:23:37,582 --> 00:23:39,585

somebody's handing out these hats.

493

00:23:39,585 --> 00:23:41,072

And what these actually are are

494

00:23:41,072 --> 00:23:43,249

from the local cell phone company

495

00:23:43,249 --> 00:23:46,789

because apparently, Palestinians

never miss an opportunity

496

00:23:46,789 --> 00:23:48,836

to do some direct marketing.

497

00:23:48,836 --> 00:23:51,131

- What are they fucking happy,

people are gonna die today

498

00:23:51,156 --> 00:23:55,015

and they just want them to

be wearing the Jawwal hat?

499

00:23:55,015 --> 00:23:56,482

(horn honking)

500

00:23:56,482 --> 00:23:58,271

- Land Day demonstrations like this one

501

00:23:58,271 --> 00:24:00,715

were taking place all around the West Bank

502

00:24:00,715 --> 00:24:03,615

and along the borders of

Israel and Syria-Lebanon

503

00:24:03,615 --> 00:24:06,183

and in Gaza, where one of the protesters,

504

00:24:06,183 --> 00:24:08,364

just 20 years old, was shot dead

505

00:24:08,364 --> 00:24:11,048

as he approached an Israeli crossing.

506

00:24:11,048 --> 00:24:14,168

But I'd heard that Palestinian

demonstrators weren't the only ones

507

00:24:14,168 --> 00:24:16,288

in the habit of throwing stones.

508

00:24:16,288 --> 00:24:18,468

So I headed to an

ordinary Palestinian town

509

00:24:18,468 --> 00:24:21,201

a bit further away from all the commotion

510

00:24:21,201 --> 00:24:23,223

to hear their side of the story.

511

00:24:23,223 --> 00:24:27,390

(horn honking)

(siren wailing)

512

00:24:29,205 --> 00:24:32,455

(plucked string music)

513

00:24:40,543 --> 00:24:42,525

We've seen a lot of settlers,

514

00:24:42,525 --> 00:24:44,879

and we've seen their

settlements and their homes,

515

00:24:44,879 --> 00:24:48,172

but we really haven't got the

Palestinian perspective at all.

516

00:24:48,172 --> 00:24:50,099

And apparently, the Palestinians

517

00:24:50,099 --> 00:24:51,845

are often attacked by settlers.

518

00:24:51,845 --> 00:24:54,054

So we've come to this

town, Asira al-Qibliya,

519

00:24:54,054 --> 00:24:56,559

to get their perspective on things.

520

00:24:56,559 --> 00:24:59,034

This is the end of the road

in this Palestinian town,

521

00:24:59,034 --> 00:25:00,933

so these houses here are the ones

522

00:25:00,933 --> 00:25:03,947

that are closest to the

Jewish settlement up the hill.

523

00:25:03,947 --> 00:25:06,247

And they face the brunt of the attacks

524

00:25:06,247 --> 00:25:08,556

when the settlers come

down throwing stones.

525

00:25:08,556 --> 00:25:10,705

And the owners of some of

these houses are telling us

526

00:25:10,705 --> 00:25:14,872

that the Israeli army

doesn't do anything about it.

527

00:25:50,205 --> 00:25:51,940

- He showed us

videos he'd taken himself

528

00:25:51,940 --> 00:25:55,018

of the settler attacks where

you could see youths come down

529

00:25:55,018 --> 00:25:59,185

from the settlement above

the village to throw stones.

530

00:26:02,433 --> 00:26:05,916

- The worst thing about it was that they

were accompanied by the Israeli army,

531

00:26:05,916 --> 00:26:09,122

who were supposedly there

to separate the two groups,

532

00:26:09,122 --> 00:26:13,289

but were in fact doing nothing

to stop the settler attack.

533

00:26:19,451 --> 00:26:21,996

- A few weeks after

we visited Asira al-Qibliya,

534

00:26:21,996 --> 00:26:23,755

the settler attacks resumed.

535

00:26:23,755 --> 00:26:26,239

But this time, two Palestinian villagers

536

00:26:26,239 --> 00:26:29,193

who were throwing stones and

approaching Jewish youths

537

00:26:29,193 --> 00:26:31,603

were shot by the settlers

with live ammunition

538

00:26:31,603 --> 00:26:34,476

during two separate attacks.

539

00:26:34,476 --> 00:26:36,988

Both times, the Israeli army did nothing

540

00:26:36,988 --> 00:26:39,021

to restrain the settlers.

541

00:26:39,021 --> 00:26:40,095

(gunfire popping)

(whistling)

542

00:26:40,095 --> 00:26:43,262

Fortunately though, both men survived.

543

00:27:08,456 --> 00:27:12,558

- The situation was obviously

very tense and very dangerous,

544

00:27:12,558 --> 00:27:16,263

but this wasn't the only place

under a fair bit of pressure.

545

00:27:16,263 --> 00:27:19,617

The Migron settlement is one

of the few Jewish outposts

546

00:27:19,617 --> 00:27:21,945

that have received clear-cut court orders

547

00:27:21,945 --> 00:27:24,137

to be totally dismantled.

548

00:27:24,137 --> 00:27:26,068

This is Migron, an illegal outpost,

549

00:27:26,068 --> 00:27:29,302

and Israel has ordered all

of this to be demolished

550

00:27:29,302 --> 00:27:30,549

in a few months.

551

00:27:30,549 --> 00:27:33,357

So it's got a bit of a

Deliverance vibe going on,

552

00:27:33,357 --> 00:27:35,825

not so much because there's

a lot of hillbillies out here

553

00:27:35,825 --> 00:27:38,595

but they're about to flood the valley.

554

00:27:38,595 --> 00:27:41,101

Migron has seen some of

its structures knocked down

555

00:27:41,101 --> 00:27:44,163

by the Israeli authorities

before, but this time,

556

00:27:44,163 --> 00:27:47,186

Israel's high court has

ordered that the entire place

557

00:27:47,186 --> 00:27:48,366

be destroyed

558

00:27:48,366 --> 00:27:52,437

because it was illegally

built on Palestinian land.

559

00:27:52,437 --> 00:27:54,736

(yelling and shouting)

560

00:27:54,736 --> 00:27:56,486

It's a very unusual ruling,

561

00:27:56,486 --> 00:27:59,321

and most Palestinians see it as a one-off

562

00:27:59,321 --> 00:28:01,442

rather than a reversal

of settlement policy

563

00:28:01,442 --> 00:28:03,172

in the West Bank.

564

00:28:03,172 --> 00:28:05,024

I spoke to one of the

residents to find out

565

00:28:05,024 --> 00:28:08,440

how she felt about the

impending demolition.

566

00:28:08,440 --> 00:28:11,322

Do you sympathize with Palestinian people

567

00:28:11,322 --> 00:28:14,425

who also see their houses get demolished

568

00:28:14,425 --> 00:28:16,650

under Israeli bulldozers?

569

00:28:16,650 --> 00:28:19,574

- I see it from another point of view.

570

00:28:19,574 --> 00:28:21,736

I think it's a different story.

571

00:28:21,736 --> 00:28:23,986

Here, nobody killed anyone.

572

00:28:24,928 --> 00:28:28,428

Israel destroying a house for Palestinians

573

00:28:30,308 --> 00:28:32,439

is not for no reason.

574

00:28:32,439 --> 00:28:33,939

Most of the times,

575

00:28:37,328 --> 00:28:39,661

it's because they did a very

576

00:28:40,964 --> 00:28:42,037

wrong thing.

577

00:28:42,037 --> 00:28:45,539

People killing people and other things.

578

00:28:45,539 --> 00:28:48,569

The story here is that

the families did nothing.

579

00:28:48,569 --> 00:28:51,061

It's not that I don't feel sorry, I do.

580

00:28:51,061 --> 00:28:54,382

But I more feel sorry about my own people

581

00:28:54,382 --> 00:28:57,493

that sits under attacks every day,

582

00:28:57,493 --> 00:28:59,290

and we see it all the time.

583

00:28:59,290 --> 00:29:01,425

- So right now must be

a really difficult time

584

00:29:01,425 --> 00:29:03,860

for the residents of Migron

585

00:29:03,860 --> 00:29:05,842

because the high court of Israel

586

00:29:05,842 --> 00:29:09,023

has stated pretty finally that by August,

587

00:29:09,023 --> 00:29:10,837

they want all of this to be demolished.

588

00:29:10,837 --> 00:29:12,750

Do you know what you're going to do?

589

00:29:12,750 --> 00:29:15,261

- We believe that we won't be,

590

00:29:15,261 --> 00:29:17,117

we won't be in the street,

591

00:29:17,117 --> 00:29:19,507

and we work with the

government to find a solution

592

00:29:19,507 --> 00:29:21,507

for this hard situation.

593

00:29:23,742 --> 00:29:26,235

- It's easy to get bogged

down in the legal details

594

00:29:26,235 --> 00:29:29,048

of the status of each

individual settlement,

595

00:29:29,048 --> 00:29:30,890

but the important thing to remember

596

00:29:30,890 --> 00:29:33,640

is that while some sites

face the chopping block,

597

00:29:33,640 --> 00:29:36,293

the total number of

settlers in the West Bank

598

00:29:36,293 --> 00:29:39,419

has grown from just

12,000 in the early '80s

599

00:29:39,419 --> 00:29:41,729

to over 300,000 today.

600

00:29:41,729 --> 00:29:43,630

And that figure doesn't even include

601

00:29:43,630 --> 00:29:47,331

a further 200,000 Israelis

living in East Jerusalem,

602

00:29:47,331 --> 00:29:50,039

according to the activist group Peace Now.

603

00:29:50,039 --> 00:29:51,972

Many have begun asking themselves

604

00:29:51,972 --> 00:29:55,074

if it's even possible for a

Palestinian state to emerge

605

00:29:55,074 --> 00:29:58,463

from a territory crisscrossed

with Jewish settlements.

606

00:29:58,463 --> 00:30:00,856

A couple of miles down

the road from Migron,

607

00:30:00,856 --> 00:30:02,515

just across a small valley,

608

00:30:02,515 --> 00:30:04,776

we saw a shack with a couple of teenagers

609

00:30:04,776 --> 00:30:07,507

poking their head out of

the door to see who we were.

610

00:30:07,507 --> 00:30:09,814

It turned out that the shantytown of one

611

00:30:09,814 --> 00:30:12,615

was yet another unauthorized outpost.

612

00:30:12,615 --> 00:30:14,699

The place isn't marked on any map,

613

00:30:14,699 --> 00:30:16,772

but already it's been

demolished and rebuilt

614

00:30:16,772 --> 00:30:18,524

a few times over.

615

00:30:18,524 --> 00:30:21,761

These kids were without

any adult supervision.

616

00:30:21,761 --> 00:30:25,928

They told me they've named

the place Strength of Zion.

617

00:30:28,144 --> 00:30:29,730

Wow, it's really basic.

618

00:30:29,730 --> 00:30:30,995

There's not even a floor.

619

00:30:30,995 --> 00:30:32,399

It's just the grass here.

620

00:30:32,399 --> 00:30:34,263

You've got holes in the roof.

621

00:30:34,263 --> 00:30:36,430

I mean, it's rained today.

622

00:30:50,825 --> 00:30:52,290

- This has been totally incredible.

623

00:30:52,290 --> 00:30:54,890

This is the freshest, most radical outpost

624

00:30:54,890 --> 00:30:57,617

that we've visited so far.

625

00:30:57,617 --> 00:30:59,220

The crazy thing about it is that

626

00:30:59,220 --> 00:31:00,878

the more you talk to these guys,

627

00:31:00,878 --> 00:31:02,168

the more somebody tells you

628

00:31:02,168 --> 00:31:03,536

that God has given them this land,

629

00:31:03,536 --> 00:31:05,583

and that there is no two ways around it.

630

00:31:05,583 --> 00:31:08,364

You kind of start to believe them

631

00:31:08,364 --> 00:31:11,034

and get to the point where you think

632

00:31:11,034 --> 00:31:14,617

a peaceful settlement

is almost impossible.

633

00:31:15,636 --> 00:31:17,728

With so many settlements being built up

634

00:31:17,728 --> 00:31:20,835

on the future territory

of the Palestinian state,

635

00:31:20,835 --> 00:31:23,107

you start to wonder if

Israel is working to make

636

00:31:23,107 --> 00:31:25,352

the two-state solution a reality,

637

00:31:25,352 --> 00:31:27,855

or if it's just telling

the international community

638

00:31:27,855 --> 00:31:30,029

what it wants to hear.

639

00:31:30,029 --> 00:31:32,615

The more Israelis move to the West Bank,

640

00:31:32,615 --> 00:31:37,153

the less viable a Palestinian

state seems to be.

641

00:31:37,153 --> 00:31:38,707

So the real question becomes

642

00:31:38,707 --> 00:31:40,420

whether Palestinians will end up

643

00:31:40,420 --> 00:31:43,408

citizens of a greater

Israel with equal rights

644

00:31:43,408 --> 00:31:47,398

or if they face a permanent

regime of occupation.

645

00:31:47,398 --> 00:31:51,753

(yelling in foreign language)

646

00:31:51,753 --> 00:31:54,336

(upbeat music)

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Film: Renegade Jewish Settlers

http://www.journeyman.tv/film/5607

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