Holy Land

An Israeli army patrol near Bethlehem 在伯利恆附近的以軍巡邏車

The West Bank, part of historical Palestine and known as Judea and Samaria in Jewish traditions, has been occupied by the State of Israel since 1967.

歷史上巴勒斯坦地的一部分，並在猶太傳統中被稱為猶大及撒瑪利亞的西岸地帶，自 1967 年開始被以色列國佔領至今。

An Israeli army patrol in Hebron 在希伯崙的以軍巡邏隊

Under the Israeli military occupation, human rights of the indigenous Palestinians are frequently violated, while land is expropriated en masse for the construction of Israeli settlements and infrastructure.

在以色列的軍事佔領底下，在那裡土生土長的巴勒斯坦人的人權被經常性地侵犯，而大批的土地則被沒收來興建以色列殖民區和基建設施。

Palestinians line up at a checkpoint before daybreak 日出前在檢查站排隊的巴勒斯坦人

Over 500 checkpoints and roadblocks of various scales are located in the West Bank (a land mass five times of Hong Kong), restricting the movement of the Palestinians between Palestinian towns, villages, and their entry to Jerusalem.

在西岸地帶（其面積約為香港的五倍）有超過 500 個不同規模的檢查站和路障，限制著巴勒斯坦人在巴勒斯坦城鎮、村落間來往，又或是進入耶路撒冷的行動自由。

The queue inside a checkpoint 在檢查站裡面的隊列

People are forced to use detours up to five times longer, or required to line up at the checkpoints as early as 3 o’clock in the morning in order to gain an early entry to workplace.

部分人需要用比正常長五倍的繞道，又或需要在早至凌晨三時在檢查站排隊，以便能儘早上班。

The wreckage of the demolished house of a Palestinian family 一個巴勒斯坦家庭的房子被拆毀後的殘骸

More than 26,000 Palestinian structures (houses, barns…) have been demolished by the Israeli government since 1967.

自 1967 年起，已有超過 26,000 個巴勒斯坦建築物（如房子、倉庫等）被以色列政府拆毀。

An Israeli soldier carries out a demolition order 負責執行清拆令的以色列士兵

Of those with which an exact reason was identified, approximately 10% were destroyed as a mean of collective punishment, whether it’s for military or political involvement in acts against the occupation. 25% were shattered because the lack of a proper building permit— which is almost impossible for a Palestinian to obtain. The rest were smashed in “military operations”, although the wanton destruction makes such claims questionable in many cases.

在拆毀理由能被確定的個案當中，約百分之十是因家人參與反對佔領的武裝或政治活動而被予以的集體懲罰行為。另外百分之二十五是因為沒有建築許可證是巴勒斯坦人幾乎無可能取得的。其餘的則是在「軍事行動」中拆毀，雖然很多時那種放肆式的破壞使這個理由難以令人信服。

An injured Palestinian protester being rushed to the ambulance 一名受了傷的巴勒斯坦示威者被送往救傷車

In various places in the West Bank, Palestinian, Israeli and international activists join together in weekly demonstrations against the occupation and land confiscation.

在西岸地帶的各處，每星期都有巴勒斯坦、以色列及國際活躍分子組織反對軍事佔領和土地充公的示威。

An Israeli army vehicle fires teargas canisters into the crowd 以色列軍車向群眾發射催淚彈

These largely peaceful protests (there are occasional rock throwing youths and children away from the crowd) are responded and suppressed by the Israeli army with rubber bullets, teargas, Skunk (a chemical which leaves terrible odor for days), stun grenades, pepper spray and in some cases, live bullets.

以色列軍人會以橡膠子彈、催淚彈、化學臭液、閃光彈、胡椒噴霧，有時甚至乎是實彈去對付及驅散這些大致上和平的示威行動（間中有身處在示威群眾之外的青年或兒童擲石子還擊）。

Palestinians, under the supervision of Israeli soldiers, return from work 一批巴勒斯坦人在以色列士兵的監察下下班回家

The Palestinian economy, after many years of suffocation, restriction, and targeted destruction, has become highly fragile, and dependent on foreign aid and the Israeli economy.

Agricultural products, one of the main economic outputs, such as that of olives and olive-derived products, are being harmed by land confiscation, aquifers being exploited, olive fields being damaged by extreme Israeli settlers, and export restrictions.

巴勒斯坦的經濟在多年的壓抑、限制及被故意破壞後，已變得非常脆弱，需依賴外國援助和受制於以色列經濟。

重要經濟產業之一的農業出產，諸於橄欖和橄欖副產品，就因土地被沒收、水源被侵佔、橄欖園被極端以色列殖民者破壞，以及出口限制而受損。

A Palestinian tailor waits for work 在等待工作機會的巴勒斯坦裁縫師

In recent years, Palestinians employed by Israeli companies (sometimes to work on land confiscated from them) for their low wages are being dumped and replaced with migrant workers from South East Asia and Africa, further damaging their livelihood.

以往被以色列公司因工資較低而被僱用的巴勒斯坦人（有時是在他們被充公了的土地上工作）近年亦被來自東南亞及非洲的勞工所取代，令他們的生計進一步受損。

Palestinians in Hebron are under the ever watchful eyes of Israeli soldiers 在希伯崙的巴勒斯坦人長期受以色列軍人監控

Hebron is the epitome of the occupation, 500 Israeli settlers reside inside the city being protected by 2,000 soldiers. It’s the only Palestinian town with Israeli settlements located inside . As a result, confrontations happen every so often.

希伯崙是整個軍事佔領的縮影，500 個以色列殖民者在那裡受 2,000 名士兵保護著。她是唯一一個有以色列殖民區在內的巴勒斯坦城鎮。結果就是雙方時不時發生衝突。

Overhead fences installed along a street in Hebron for pedestrians’ protection from objects hurled by extreme Israeli settlers 在希伯崙某街道的天花網，用來保護途人免受激進以色列殖民者投擲的物件所傷害

Though confrontations are not limited to Hebron. After years of occupation and political stalemate, the First Intifada (uprising) finally broke out in 1987. Since then, at least 8,000 Palestinians and 1,500 Israelis deaths in Israel/Palestine have been attributed to the conflict.

然而，衝突亦非僅在希伯崙發生。在多年的軍事佔領及政治僵局底下，在 1987 年終於爆發了第一次起義。自此，在以巴地區已有超過 8,000 名巴勒斯坦人及 1,500 名以色列人因衝突而死。

A blocked pathway in Hebron 在希伯崙其中一條被封鎖了的通道

To maintain the occupation, the Israeli army regularly carries out various inhumane acts to subjugate the Palestinian population. Random house searches, arrests, beatings, harassment and torture are widespread. People can be detained for 6-month (sometimes longer) without charge.

為了維持軍事佔領的持續運作，以色列軍隊經常採取種種不人道的手段去壓制巴勒斯坦人民。隨意入屋搜查、拘留、毆打、騷擾和拷打比比皆是。被逮捕的人可以在沒有指控的情況下被拘留 6 個月或以上。

A Palestinian being interrogated at a checkpoint in Hebron 一名巴勒斯坦人在希伯崙的某個檢查站被盤問

And children are not exempted. As a result of living under an oppressive occupation, post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms are common among the Palestinian youth.

而兒童及青少年亦不能倖免。在這個沈重的軍事佔領底下，創傷後壓力症的症狀在巴勒斯坦年青人中間十分普遍。

A Palestinian village overlooked by an Israeli settlement 被以色列殖民區俯視著的巴勒斯坦村落

There are over 100 Israeli settlements in the West Bank with numerous outposts dotting the hilltops, controlling not only the land but also natural resources. In total, there are over 500,000 Israeli settlers residing in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

在西岸地帶，有超過 100 個以色列殖民區以及相當數量的山頂哨點，同時控制著土地和天然資源。在包括東耶路撒冷的西岸地帶裡面，總共有超過 500,000 名以色列殖民者居住。

An Israeli settlement 以色列殖民區

While not all settlers are extreme nationalists, these settlements, supported and encouraged by the Israeli government as a form of control over the occupied territories, are often built on confiscated land.

雖然並非所有的殖民者皆是狂熱的民族主義分子，這些受以色列政府支持及鼓勵，用以控制佔領地帶的殖民區，很多時都是建造在沒收得來的土地之上。

The separation barrier in Bethlehem 在伯利恆的隔離牆

The separation barrier built on Palestinian land is perhaps the most prominent feature of the occupation. The barrier, over 700-km in length when completed, consists of concrete walls of 8/9-m tall, fences, ditches, razor wire, an electronic monitoring system, patrol roads and buffer zones.

在巴勒斯坦人土地上興建的隔離牆，可能是整個軍事佔領中最顯著的部分。這堵完成後將超過 700 公里長的隔離牆，是由 8-9 米高的混凝土固件、圍欄、溝渠、鐵絲網、電子監察系統、巡邏道及緩衝區等組成。

The separation barrier in Jerusalem 在耶路撒冷的隔離牆

Together with the checkpoints, roadblocks and settlements, it’s essentially turned the Palestinian towns and villages into South Africa apartheid-style Bantustans.

在它和檢查站、路障和殖民區的結合作用之下，巴勒斯坦人的城鎮和村落已變成好像南非種族隔離政策下的黑人家園一樣。

A Palestinian Bedouin village in the South Hebron Hills 希伯崙南部山嶺的巴勒斯坦貝都因人村落

A number of Palestinian Bedouin villages are located in the South Hebron Hills, where the villagers moved to after being displaced by the 1948 war.

在希伯崙南部山嶺有一些巴勒斯坦貝都因人的村落，由那些在 1948 年戰爭時逃到那裡的人所建立。

A barn in a Palestinian Bedouin village 某巴勒斯坦貝都因人村落裡的畜棚

While the nearby Israeli settlements set up after 1967 enjoy the army’s protection and are connected to the water, electricity and road networks, these villages are under the constant threat of demolition.

當附近那些 1967 年後興建的以色列殖民區，有以色列軍隊保護並接駁到電力、供水和道路網絡的時候，這些村落就一直面對著隨時被拆毀的威脅。

A child in a refugee camp near Bethlehem 在伯利恆附近某個難民營裡的小孩

More than 700,000 Palestinians, at least half of the Arab population in what became the State of Israel, were displaced by the 1948 war. They fled to the West Bank, Gaza, and nearby countries. Many of these refugees and their descendants, now numbering 5,000,000, are still residing in the refugee camps set up decades ago.

1948年戰爭期間，在今日的以色列國境內有超過 700,000 名巴勒斯坦人（佔當時該區阿拉伯人口最少一半以上）被迫離開家園，逃到西岸、加沙地帶，以及鄰近國家。現時，這些為數超過 5,000,000 的難民和其後裔中的相當部分，仍然住在那些在幾十年前成立的難民營裡面。

A street scene inside a refugee camp 難民營裡的景象

Their Right of Return, as affirmed by the United Nations Resolution 194, which entitles them the right to return to their homes or seek compensation, remains unrecognized by the Israeli government to this day.

至今，以色列政府還未承認由聯合國 194 號決議所肯定，他們擁有的歸家權利。該權利允許他們重返家園或獲得賠償

Silwan, a pre-dominantly Palestinian neighbourhood just outside the Old City of Jerusalem, is one of the many settlement targets of the Israeli government 兆雲，一個位處耶路撒冷舊城旁、以巴勒斯坦人為主的社區，是以色列政府的目標殖民區之一

In the middle of the West Bank lies Jerusalem, commonly divided into Jewish West Jerusalem and Arab East Jerusalem. The latter was annexed by the State of Israel after the 1967 war.

位處於西岸地帶中央的是耶路撒冷城，一般被劃分為以猶太人為主的西耶路撒冷及以阿拉伯人為主的東耶路撒冷。後者在 1967 年戰爭後被以色列國吞併。

A child in the Muslim Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem 在耶路撒冷舊城穆斯林區內的小孩子

Various administrative measures have been employed by the Jerusalem municipal government to induce emigration of the Palestinian population and to maintain the racial demographic—discriminatory land use zoning; refusal to issue building permits; confiscation of Jerusalem ID; refusal to improve the infrastructure of Palestinian neighbourhoods; inadequate schoolhouses; confiscation of houses and land based on dubious methods and laws; and house demolitions.

耶路撒冷巿政府多年來透過種種行政手段包括歧視性土地規劃、拒絕簽發建築許可證、沒收耶路撒冷身分證、拒絕改善巴勒斯坦人所住社區的基建設施、未有提供足夠學額、使用可疑的方法及法例去充公房屋和土地，以及拆毀房屋等去誘迫巿內的巴勒斯坦人移居別處並維持該城猶阿人口的比例。