The Palestinians living in this part of the West Bank are mainly off-grid and either have no electricity at all, or use expensive diesel generators if they can afford to. Area C, which spans two-thirds of the West Bank and is under Israeli control, is home to 300,000 Palestinians. For villages in the mountains of South Hebron — often no more than a few households living in caves in the hillside — access to basic services is a daily struggle.

According to Israeli-Palestinian NGO Comet-ME, the Israeli authorities refuse to provide energy to Palestinians as part of a systematic campaign to push them off their lands, into Areas A and B. But amid these daily hardships and brutal conditions, new routes to make life easier here have been opening up. For these arid, windswept lands are perfectly suited to solar and wind energy.

Over the past few years, Comet-ME has worked with people in South Mount Hebron to set up small-scale renewable energy systems based on these technologies. These have improved lives and livelihoods by providing clean energy for refrigeration, cooking, making butter and cheese, and communications. So far Comet-ME has helped bring renewable energy to around 2,000 people in 24 villages in the southern West Bank.

Comet-ME also builds clean water systems for the communities — 70 percent of whom, the UN reports, are not connected to the water network and rely on expensive tankered water. In some villages, people use as little as 20 litres of water a day — just a fifth of the World Health Organisation’s recommended level.

These photos capture Comet-ME’s work and the people who benefit from it:

© Tomer Appelbaum

A technician wires up a wind turbine before installation in the South Hebron hills. The villages here are in Area C of the West Bank, which is under Israeli control. Elad Orian, Comet-ME’s co-founder, says Israel does not provide Palestinians with basic services “as part of a political campaign to try and drive them off their land”.

© Tomer Appelbaum

The team often erect turbines at night to avoid confrontation with the Israeli authorities who have previously halted installations. The region, also known as South Mount Hebron, is ideally suited for wind energy: in the afternoon, as the sun goes down, the wind picks up.

© Tomer Appelbaum

An off-grid solar system in Sha’eb el Buttom, a village in the South Hebron hills. In the background is an illegal Israeli settlement that Israel has fully connected to the grid.

© Tomer Appelbaum

Solar panels in Sha’eb el Buttom. South Mount Hebron is particularly suited to renewable energy, says Comet-ME co-founder Elad Orian. It’s on the edge of a desert, so very sunny, and 800 metres above sea level, so extremely windy. In the winter there are powerful storms, with wind speeds exceeding 150 kilometres an hour.

© Tomer Appelbaum

A woman pours milk into a new butter churner, powered by renewable energy. Electric churners slash the time it takes women to make butter and cheese — one of the staple livelihoods here. Many of the villagers in the Mount Hebron hills live in caves such as this one in Tuba.

© Tomer Appelbaum

Hajeh Nuzha with a new butter churner in Sha’eb el Buttom village. The use of electric churners and refrigerators not only makes it easier to produce butter and cheese, but also leads to better products that sell for higher prices: family incomes have grown by as much as 70 per cent since the electric goods were introduced.

© Tomer Appelbaum

Women also use renewable energy to run laundry machines, such as this one in a home in Sha’eb el Buttom. Electricity has “revolutionised the lives of women”, Orian says, because they tend to do household tasks and take care of butter and cheese production.

© Tomer Appelbaum

This small building in Sha’eb el Buttom houses the electricity control room.

© Tomer Appelbaum

Inside the control room.

© Tomer Appelbaum

Many Palestinians in Mount Hebron rely on rainwater harvesting. Because this often fails to meet their needs, families have paid high prices for extra water brought in by tanker. To reduce this burden, Comet-ME supplies equipment to improve access to clean water. Here the team are installing meters to monitor water use for new water systems.

© Tomer Appelbaum

A pump and priming tank on top of a cistern in which rainwater is stored. Pipes carry water from the cistern to homes, where taps are installed. Before reaching the tanks, the water goes through particle filters to clean it. The new systems mean that children no longer have to carry heavy loads of water to their homes.

First published by SciDev

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“We build our resistance from the Earth itself,” says Rashed Khaderi, a coordinator with the Jordan Valley Solidarity Movement, sitting in the organisation’s headquarters in Fasayil Village. The building is more than 100 years old and is made of earth, in the form of adobe bricks.

Adobe building is an ancient technique, where earth, sand, manure and straw are mixed together with water, moulded into bricks and dried in the sun. In the Middle East, people have been building houses like this for thousands of years.

“We build in earth because it is durable, obtainable, inexpensive and friendly to the environment,” Rashed told Positive News. “And the houses that we build are low energy – they stay warm in winter and cool in summer.”

The Jordan Valley Solidarity Movement (JVSM) is a network of activists and community groups from all over the Jordan Valley, working together to protect the right of Palestinians to live in the area and to access and manage its resources in a sustainable way.

They have their work cut out for them. The Jordan Valley comprises 30% of the land area of the West Bank, stretching approximately 100km from the Sea of Galilee in the north to the Dead Sea in the south. The Jordan River forms the border between the West Bank and Jordan (the East Bank), and thus the valley is an area of strategic military significance.

“We build in earth because it is durable, obtainable, inexpensive and friendly to the environment.”

Due to its unique topography, it is also of great economic value. The valley is entirely below sea level and is shielded from harsh winds by the mountains rising up to the east and the west. This means it provides a climate capable of year-round crop production, for those with enough water to irrigate.

These attributes have made it a target for Israeli colonisation, with land and water resources being seized by illegal settlers and multiple military bases dominating the landscape. An estimated 86% of the area is now controlled by settlements via their regional councils, leaving little behind for Palestinian residents.

Oxfam published a report in 2012 in which it stated that “the sheer number and scope of restrictions on Palestinians living in the Jordan Valley suggest that they are part of a systematic policy to push Palestinians off their land, while increasing Israeli government control”.

These restrictions include lack of connection to the water network, a deficit of sewage services, lack of connection to the electricity network, denial of building permits, outlawing of grazing and farming on most land areas, and attendant demolitions of ‘illegal’ homes and infrastructure (including rainwater harvesting cisterns).

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, 246 Palestinian structures were demolished in the Jordan Valley in 2014, leading to the displacement of 510 people.

But the communities of the Jordan Valley are organising themselves – building new homes and rebuilding demolished structures.

“Since 2007, together with our partners, we have built 200 new houses, five schools and three clinics using earth building techniques,” Rashed says proudly. “Three of the schools have demolition orders and one, in Ras Al Auja, was destroyed, as well as two houses. We tried to get building permits, and to be able to see the Israeli master plans for the villages, but of course they were denied.”

According to Oxfam, 94% of Palestinian applications for building permits in Area C have been denied in recent years, whereas B’Tselem, the Israeli Centre for Human Rights, say that the civil administration has only prepared a partial master plan for one Jordan Valley village – Al Jiftlick.

But the JVSM is ramping up its efforts. “We have a brick-making machine now that can make 800 bricks per day if we have people to work it. We could build several houses every month,” says Rashed.

“But resistance is hard. It puts financial strain on the people. Seven families in Fasayil recently received demolition orders. They had to pay 1,000 shekels each just for a lawyer to check the papers.”

For a community where the poverty rate is double that of the rest of the West Bank, that is a heavy burden indeed.
However, according to Danna Masad of ShamsArd Design Studio, earth building can form an important part of a resistance economy in Palestine.

“The main advantage of building with earth is that it’s not Israeli,” she told Positive News. “Earth building is cheap in material costs but labour intensive. That means that most of the money can go into the Palestinian economy, where it empowers the workers.”

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At the JVSM, building a resistance economy is also a priority. They’re combining earth building with community development to boost the economic situation of the local herders.

“We’re building a cheese factory out of earth bricks in Al Jiftlick” says Rashed. “There was no milk processing facility in the area. The farmers find it hard to sell their produce. We need to change that.”

According to a World Bank report released in October 2013, if Israeli restrictions on Palestinian access to land and water resources in Area C were lifted, potential agricultural activities could add US$704m to the struggling Palestinian economy each year.

“We’re not asking for aid. We just want our rights” says Rashed.

In the meantime, Israel plans to expand settlements in the Jordan Valley and put still more pressure on Palestinian residents to leave. In March 2012, the Knesset approved a budget allocating $2 million for additional settlements in the Jordan Valley, while in September 2014 a new Israeli Civil Administration published a plan to forcibly relocate Palestinian Bedouin communities into new development towns.

In the face of this pressure, the non-violent tactics of the JVSM and their partners look flimsy – earth building and cheese-making versus tanks and bulldozers. Nevertheless, many communities remain steadfast in their refusal to abandon their land or way of life, and these are the strategies that are making it possible.

“To exist is to resist” Rashed says. “That is our slogan and that is how we work. And we will keep existing.”

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Sweden has formally recognised the state of Palestine, making it the first European Union member-nation to acknowledge the country’s statehood in this way.

“It’s an important step that confirms the right of Palestinians to self-determination,” Swedish foreign minister Margot Wallström declared in a newspaper article. “Sweden’s traditionally close ties with the state of Israel are now complemented by an equal relationship to the other party.”

Several other European nations now appear set to follow Sweden’s lead, in part as a way of expressing frustration with failed peace talks and Israel’s expansion of settlements in the West Bank.

“We’re not going to wait forever,” one senior European official told the Wall Street Journal. “Other European countries are poised to follow Sweden.”

In Britain, MPs passed a non-binding resolution calling for the recognition of the Palestinian state. Labour Party shadow foreign minister Ian Lucas said that the final decision on the matter lay with the coalition government, but pledged action if his party wins the next general election.

“We fully support two states living side by side in peace, recognised by all their neighbours. We are clear that Palestinian statehood is not a gift to be given, but a right to be recognised,” he said.

French socialist lawmakers are now drawing up a similar resolution, asking the French government to recognise Palestine “as an instrument in working towards a final resolution to the conflict”.

A vote is also pending in the Danish parliament, and Irish officials have signalled support for the Palestinian state, saying they hope increased recognition will help break “the cycle of construction, reconstruction, destruction and further construction”.

Efforts to recognise Palestine have drawn harsh criticism from Israeli officials, with the country’s foreign minister warning his Swedish counterpart that “the Middle East is more complicated than self-assembly furniture from Ikea”.

Some European leaders also have doubts about the wisdom of recognising Palestine. Still, a number of senior EU officials appear determined to ensure the issue remains on the region’s radar.

“The risk is that if we do not move forward on the political track, we will go back… again to violence,” said Federica Mogherini, the European Union’s new foreign affairs chief.

Nonetheless, Mogherini said, European recognition of Palestine is secondary to efforts to resolve the region’s tensions in a way that is peaceful and fair for all concerned.

“What’s important for me is not whether other countries, be they European or not, recognise Palestine,” Mogherini told reporters. “I’d be happy if, during my mandate, the Palestinian state existed.”

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The Arab League initiative for peace

The Arab Peace Initiative (API), which is an extraordinary document, would require all Arab countries to normalise relations with Israel in return for comprehensive Arab-Israel peace. The plan offers full recognition of Israel but only if it returned fully to the 4 June 1967 lines, including along the Golan Heights and in east Jerusalem. It also requires a “just solution” for Palestinian refugees, which will bring security, stability and prosperity to the region. It is also worth considering France’s proposal to have European-run border monitors between the Gaza strip and Israel, in an effort to end hostilities and encourage peace.

The role of US in brokering peace

The attempts of successive US presidents, including the present Obama administration, to bring peace are laudable but questionable. Attempts to bring peace in the region can only be genuine if the US stops funding Israel and its allies with billions of dollars worth of the latest high-tech weaponry. Israel’s military aggression against Palestinians amounts to possible war crimes and crimes against humanity. The UN and governments across the world should enforce a legally binding military embargo on Israel similar to that imposed on South Africa during apartheid.

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Learning from the Northern Ireland peace process

Northern Ireland has become relatively peaceful and prosperous following the Good Friday agreement brokered in 1998. This model is being increasingly applied by political leaders to solve other conflicts around the world. Some of the lessons learned that could be applied in the Israel-Palestine conflict:

1. There should be a lasting ceasefire to end violence as all parties are fed up with 60 years of infighting.

2. Start negotiations between all parties in the conflict – including sworn enemies – in a trusted manner, for sensible solutions.

3. Agreement for a two-state solution in which Palestinian statehood is recognised and Israel’s identity and right to exist is acknowledged.

4. Agreement for equitable sharing of scarce resources, such as oil, water food, land.

5. There is a need for strong leaders to help communities develop trust and close and friendly relations without excluding any group.

6. Genuine efforts at decommissioning weapons and prisoner release.

7. Setting up an Israeli-Arab Council to settle differences instead of resolving them on the battlefield.

8. No rigid preconditions for achieving the objectives of political peace process.

9. Israel needs to adopt more humane approach towards the people of Gaza and lift the blockade and barriers. Palestinian groups should reciprocate with a ceasefire and stop all acts of violence against Israeli people.

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Having left the UK on 21 March 2011, the ‘bicycle caravan’ is due to arrive in Jerusalem in July and is stopping at farms, social centres and schools along the way to take part in workshops and debates. Travelling under the name Pedal, the group is using video, photography, audio and theatre projects to compile a cultural document tracking the stories, experiences and ideas it encounters en route.

“It is the beginning of a story of learning, sharing and mutual inspiration from London to Jerusalem and many sites between,” says Pedal member Adam Payne.

The initiative has three main aims; the first is to link stories of struggle. “We believe that the power of social and ecological movements comes from the integrity of personal relationships and the diversity of ideas they share,” says Adam. “By carrying experiences between communities, we gather momentum behind movements for social change. We’re travelling through sun and rain, saddle sores and rushing energy, strengthening networks of living, breathing solidarity.”

The second aim of the group is to focus on issues of access to land, seed and water, linking the struggles of agriculturalists, migrants and oppressed communities for equal access to the Earth’s resources. “Ecologically sensitive food growing is an important foundation for sustainable and resilient communities everywhere,” says Adam. “In Palestine people are deprived of land, seed and water by the Israeli military occupation and illegal settlements,” he claims.

So far, Pedal has taken part in actions against corporate control of seeds, it has swapped seeds through its own seed bank and shared experiences with both rural and urban food growers.

The third aim of Pedal is to support the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign. “BDS is an international grassroots movement that challenges the institutions and companies that profit from and normalise the occupation of Palestine,” explains Pedal member Rachel Blake. “It was called for in July 2005 by 170 organisations representing Palestinian civil society and stems from a model which became critical in ending apartheid in South Africa.”

Pedal, which uses consensus organisation to ensure democratic decision making, decided that going by bicycle was the obvious choice for such a journey. “It allows us to travel and visit communities while interacting with the landscape and cultures we flow between,” explains Rachel. “Furthermore, it allows us to move long distances while minimising our reliance on destructive forms of consumption.

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