Less than five minutes after leaving Ma'ale Rehoboam, we encountered a pothole. Not theoretically, but a well-honed rock that slashed the tire of the SUV we were riding in. Although an impressive asphalt road led straight to the destination we wanted to reach, this is a large Palestinian-controlled town whose entry is life-threatening, so we decided to drive through the area by roads. A quick tire change, and we continued on our way to the new city that is currently being built in the heart of the desert by the Palestinian Authority, with massive assistance from the European Union.
Suddenly, the dirt road was replaced by a completely new asphalt road heading east, straight into the Judean Desert. The road was paved for miles and miles, an ugly black scar in the middle of the desert. Until a few months ago there was a nature reserve here with desert plants and animals, today it is one of the largest and most disturbing projects in Judea and Samaria. The damage to the environment, of course, is irreparable.
In the Heart of the Desert: The Hidden City Built by the Palestinians | Regavim
The Regavim and Israel This Week investigation reveals for the first time the details of the city being built out of sight. This is a place that Israelis rarely go to, and which the Civil Administration also refrains from going to regularly. When we provided the officials with the documentation we had taken and told about the information we had gathered, the mouths opened and the honest and painful answer was: "We have nothing to say." In the heart of the desert, contrary to every agreement signed between Israel and the Palestinians, and causing severe damage to the environment, the Palestinians offer plots at prices that sound imaginary to us.
The treaty reserves are the fruits of the Oslo Accords. The Oslo II Agreement, signed in Taba in 1995, states that responsibility for nature reserves in Judea and Samaria will be transferred from the Civil Administration to the Palestinian side. "The Palestinian side will safeguard and protect the nature reserves in accordance with established scientific standards," the statement states. After emphasizing that the two sides would agree on methods for cooperation regarding the protection and conservation of nature reserves through a joint committee of experts, it was also clarified that "each side will take appropriate measures to protect nature reserves, protected natural assets as well as species of animals, plants and flowers of special species, as well as to implement rules of conduct in nature reserves."
Three years passed and the Wye Agreement was signed between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat. The nature reserves, three percent of the area ceded to Palestinians, have been officially designated Area B – under Palestinian civilian and Israeli security control. "The Palestinian side announced that it would act according to the established scientific standards, and that there would be no changes in the status of these areas. While these standards do not allow for new construction, existing roads and buildings may be maintained," it reads in black and white.
Unguarded reserve
At this moment, in a utopian world, you are probably imagining the nature reserves in the Palestinian Authority as they appear in the Israeli Nature and Parks Authority: a botka where entrance fees are charged, trails and springs alongside flowers and wildlife scattering on the mountains. The reality, unfortunately, is quite the opposite.
In the 25 years since that agreement was signed, the Palestinians have literally abused the treaty reserves. More than 500 illegal structures have been built in an area that is supposed to remain sterile and clean. In the Mount Hebron area, where we toured, we discovered how the Palestinians broke through an ugly path with a bulldozer. With blatant disregard for the beautiful terrain, streams and wildlife, the bulldozer cut a deep wound into the ground that will take years to heal. But none of this is even close to what is visible to those who come to eastern Gush Etzion.
Over the past year, the Palestinians have been building a hidden city in the desert. Behind the town of Za'atra, home to some 8,000 people, the authority has broken through a six-kilometer road, some with built-up sidewalks, speed bumps indicating an urban area, roundabouts and plots ready for construction and occupancy. In some publications, the area is referred to as Al-Maliha. In others, the area is defined as part of Za'atra, even though it is municipally separate from it.
"There are dozens of plots here on the axis that goes deep into the area," explains Menesh Shmueli, Regavim's field coordinator, as we drove slowly following a tractor advancing toward a construction site on the left of the road. "The work here is progressing rapidly, we were here a month ago and you can no longer identify the place. Work is ongoing all the time. They don't rest for a moment, and every time I come here I see something new. It's a crazy project, on a scale I don't know about in Judea and Samaria, and it's all within a consensual reserve. It's psychic what's going on here, there's no excuse for that."
At one of the inquiries we went up and discovered a luxurious villa being built on the hillside. The workers said they were members of the Ta'amra tribe, who live in Za'atra, among other things, and that they worked for Abu Hamid, one of the contractors from the area. They offered coffee, but we decided not to stay too deep inside the PA-controlled area and continued on our way. Later we found out how much it would cost to build such a house and rubbed our eyes in amazement.
Target Population: Israeli Arabs
It's hard not to be impressed by the elaborate video released by Beit Al-Quds Iliastitmar Volkerat, or in colloquial Hebrew - Jerusalem Investments and Real Estate. A drone glance shows hundreds of houses beneath Herodium, at an angle that the average Israeli is not even familiar with because it is Area A, under Palestinian civilian and security control, and from there the camera cuts straight to the new city that is being built in the desert. New road and houses under construction.
In another video, the photographer travels the same route we took just a few days earlier, and from there the camera cuts to a drone shot of an impressive villa with a large courtyard and next to it several other villas that are in the middle of construction. From afar, we can see what may be a kind of shopping center, also built for the benefit of the new tenants.
"Don't step on the black, it doesn't go down." Incineration of electronic waste in the heart of the reserve, photo: Naama Stern
"Come and buy your piece of land," the post read. "Modern house, great location with mountain views, areas ranging from 500 to 900 square meters and very attractive prices. Hurry up and buy. Prepare an advance of 6,000 (Jordanian) dinars and leave the rest to us."
The prices advertised publicly made us rub our eyes in amazement and consider moving to a Palestinian city for a moment. Mazmoria offers an area of 800 square meters for 24,123 dinars – NIS 1,000 for a handsome house. If you want to upgrade to 35,179 square meters on an asphalt road, you'll pay 85,435 dinars – <>,<> shekels. Two dunams of land will cost you <>,<> dinars - <>,<> shekels.
And these are not exceptional prices. The "Land for Sale" Facebook page offers 500 square meters for sums ranging from 8,000 to 15,41 dinars – 76,6-000,30 shekels. On another page, "Land in Installments", you are offered to pay an advance of 20,64 dinars (<>,<> shekels) and the rest in <> installments. If you buy three dunams, you can divide the payment over <> months, with a down payment of no more than a quarter of the price.
"Would you like to get land, but your financial circumstances don't allow for a big payment?" they ask. "Your dream will come true right now. This is land classified as a Palestinian nature reserve, surrounded by streets, with compounds that suit you and the possibility of building. The road is convenient to reach in a modern vehicle." The fact that this is a nature reserve and that the damage to flora and fauna is irreparable is only an advantage The prices for Israelis are a pipe dream, a far-fetched description that is out of this world. A quick check on the Yad2 website shows that a 420-square-meter plot in Ashkelon will cost NIS 2.7 million, while for 500 square meters in Atlit you will be asked to pay NIS 4.4 million. Even in Yeruham, a half-dunam plot will cost you 900,<> shekels.
And there are Israelis who fully understand the huge price gap and take advantage of the imaginative prices. These are, of course, Israeli Arabs, who have been buying quite a few homes in the Palestinian Authority in recent years. After all, this is ten minutes from Jerusalem, and just as Tekoa or Efrat in Gush Etzion are attractive to Jewish buyers (which causes prices to skyrocket), so too is a new and especially tempting city in the heart of the desert that is literally sold for pennies.
Menesh Shmueli says that workers with whom he spoke said they were building homes for Arabs from East Jerusalem, and the advertisements prove that the target audience is not necessarily Palestinians but rather Israeli Arabs who groan under the prices inside the Green Line and live like kings outside it.
The prices made us rub our eyes: Mazmoria offers 800 square meters for 123,1 shekels. If you want to upgrade to 000,179 square meters, you'll pay NIS 435,<>. Two dunams of land will cost you <>,<> shekels
The Mazmoria company, for example, markets the land as being near the Mazmoria checkpoint that leads to Jerusalem. "The lands are in demand among the people of Jerusalem, many of whom have already purchased. It's a ten-minute drive from the Mazmoriya checkpoint." The "Land for Sale" Facebook page made it clear that they were ready to offer "special offers to our brothers inside (Israel) and institutions." The same company published a map of the remaining plots, about half of the complex they are selling, and clarified, "Don't delay before the price goes up. Area B, a Palestinian nature reserve." From the springboard.
And it's not the end of the story. Some of the offers for sale include diagrams of neat plots, half of which have already been purchased, and the road leading to them is expected to be paved soon. Another company clarified that "there are plans for huge projects that will be implemented in the area soon, and prices are on the rise. A road is paved and soon the electricity will come."
Another company clarifies that "Thank God there are many vacant spaces, not far from the Psalm crossing leading to Jerusalem. The land is very beautiful and desirable, and many of Jerusalem have already bought it. Plots can be obtained at attractive prices and at convenient payments from 20,102 dinars (<>,<> shekels) per dunam."
European money flows
We continued driving down the road, occasionally signs appeared about future construction and various projects ahead of us. On closer inspection, it was impossible to miss the stars that make up the EU flag, alongside the emblems of various European organizations. The enormous damage caused to the environment and illegal construction are supported by the European Union, in stark contrast to the Oslo Accords and the Wye Agreement.
An official EU document published last year reviewing investments in the Palestinian Authority clarified that "in recent years, partners in Europe have stepped up their investments in the Palestinian economy." The amount, as of February 2022, when the document was published, stood at 1.4 billion euros transferred to the Palestinians over the past three years. Last February, the European Union announced that the total budget for 2022 transferred to the Palestinians was 296 million euros.
The large sums go to, among other things, salaries for PA employees, but also for paving roads, electricity, water, aid to farmers, and investments in private companies. The Palestinians know how to use these funds well. It is not inconceivable that EU funds financed the paving of the road, roundabouts, sidewalks, as well as the creation of plots that trample the nature reserve. We contacted the EU for information and comment, but were refused.
"They work contrary to Israeli and international law, and also contrary to their own founding charter," says Meir Deutsch, executive director of Regavim. He explains that the European Union is a signatory to the Wye Agreement as an observer, which undertakes to prevent people from entering or settling in the nature reserve. "Not only are the Palestinians not guarding the reserve, they are breaking new ground and laying infrastructure funded by the European Union. The EU's founding treaty says that one of its goals is to protect the environment and a sustainable future, but we see tractors accompanied by EU vehicles working in the field.
"As part of the establishment of the Palestinian state, the infrastructure of a city is being built within the treaty reserve," Deutsch says in frustration. "It started in the Herodium area with a road breakthrough, then the laying of water infrastructure inside the nature reserve, and then fencing of area cells and plowing areas and construction. The Palestinian Authority disperses areas with blocks to allow Palestinians to build homes. This is not a person who walks and scatters blocks in the middle of the desert, but dozens of pallets scattered over a huge area in order to take it over.
"When the State of Israel wants to, it knows how to exert pressure on the Palestinian Authority and against the European Union, but so far it has not taken any step to stop the involvement of the EU. We meet MEPs in the European Union and most of them are unaware of the incident. As far as they are concerned, they are giving humanitarian aid to the Palestinians, and are not aware that the money goes to illegal activity in Judea and Samaria. This situation must be changed."
"This is the most sought-after real estate site in the area," says Shlomo Ne'eman, head of the Gush Etzion council and chairman of the Yesha Council, who is watching with wide eyes what is happening in his jurisdiction. A year ago, he approached the enforcement agencies in the area and asked them to demolish what had already been built, but to no avail.
"It's a city for all intents and purposes. We picked up drones and we are monitoring what is happening there. I passed the materials on to former Defense Minister Benny Gantz, but he didn't really pay attention. He said it was serious and that it needed to be dealt with, but in practice nothing happened," Ne'eman says.
11 enforcement actions in 3 years
A few months ago, Lavi contacted the Civil Administration requesting data, pursuant to the Freedom of Information Law, regarding the activity of the body responsible for law and order in Judea and Samaria in the area of the Treaty Reserve in 2020-2018. The answer was sharp and sweeping - almost nothing.
"In 2018-2020, the Civil Administration's inspection unit carried out 11 goods-type enforcement actions in light of suspicion of committing an offense involving construction without a lawful permit in contractual reserves in Area B," the Civil Administration wrote in its response. "Divided into years, in 2018 the Inspection Unit carried out two enforcement actions, in 2019 it carried out eight enforcement actions, and in 2020 one enforcement action was carried out." As a reminder, even if we ignore the city that is being built in the desert, there are 500 illegal structures built in the area of the Treaty Reserve. 11 actions in three years is a drop in the ocean.
Luxury houses at floor prices, photo: Naama Stern
Lavi further asked what types of prohibited actions were carried out in the nature reserves in Area B known to the Civil Administration, and what are the enforcement procedures in case the nature reserves are damaged. Here the answer surprised us as well: "The Civil Administration does not have information on the scope and types of 'prohibited actions' carried out in the green areas or nature reserves in Area B. The Civil Administration does not have specific enforcement procedures for cases of damage to nature reserves in Area B," the text in black and white. The bottom line is that the Palestinians are building and destroying the reserve, and the administration is not monitoring the incident at all.
Although this is years before the construction of the new city, there is no difference in the administration's answers. When we showed the Civil Administration officials the documentation we had collected, including the advertisements of the Palestinian companies and the documentation of the road as we photographed it, the reaction was a complete surprise.
Here it should be said that an asterisk should be put on the response of the administration, since they have in this case extenuating circumstances. Since the area was transferred to Palestinian civilian control, the Civil Administration does not have a permit to work there without political approval. The Civil Administration occasionally operates in Area B, but this is done with political approval and military force. Dismantling what was built and restoring the desert to its former state would require especially large forces, and it is hard to see how such a thing would happen. Khan al Ahmar on steroids. "We don't even get close to it," says a senior Civil Administration official. "It's way above us. This decision must come from the political echelon."
Neaman warns that time to act against illegal construction of these dimensions is rapidly running out. "There are about three months left in which we will be able to carry out massive demolitions and stop the takeover. It's not certain that we'll be able to stop it all now, because the places closest to Za'atara may already require a mega-event to enforce, but if we go a little further we can make amends. True, from a landscape point of view the damage is irreparable, but if they plow the road the animals will return, and in 50 years you will not be able to see that there was anything here. In two years, there may be a scar left, but eventually it will heal. If they build this city, everything will remain 500 years from now. This scandal must be stopped, the buildings that have been built and have not yet been occupied. There are going to be thousands of housing units there that no one will touch."
According to Ne'eman, there is a precedent that allows action against violators of the law. "True, we are in a situation as a result of the Wye agreement, but in Samaria they operated from coals that produced polluting smoke that reached Israel, and finally Civil Administration forces came in and dismantled these factories. This is a nature reserve that should not be touched for nothing. At the moment, they are coming and violating the agreement with a crude foot, destroying the desert. Don't tell us there's nothing you can do, because it's a fact that you did. Let in a Border Police battalion and destroy this whole thing. Bring things back to normal." In 2017, the Civil Administration closed an illegal quarry there, which was reported in Israel Hayom.
We turn left and descend to the wadi near the new city, and a horrifying picture emerges. A huge black complex, created as a result of the burning of electronic waste. "Don't step on the black, it doesn't go down," Mensch warns me. This fire, which is no longer active, has been burning for more than a month, spreading severe air pollution, yet another sign of the heavy damage carried out by the Palestinians in the heart of the nature reserve.
Shlomo Rabinovich of Green Now says that damage to the land is critical. "There are species of animals and special vegetation there, which is irreparably damaged. The infrastructure significantly harms the animals that want to cross, and destroys the route of the wadis that are located there. This joins a quarry that was active there and a cement factory that Mahmoud Abbas' relatives wanted to build in the area. The problem is that there is no enforcement in place. The Civil Administration says it cannot operate in Areas A and B (both under Palestinian civilian control), and the IDF also says it is only allowed to operate in Area C when it comes to such matters. Both sides pledged to protect the reserve, effectively giving the PA a free hand to do whatever it wanted. Who will guard the reserve now?"
We return to the main axis at noon and discover that we are not alone. It is a Muslim holiday and many families have arrived. The slow drive and the fact that entire families travel in cars clearly indicate that these are families considering purchasing land in the area. A convoy of jeeps is in front of us, and suddenly the fact that this is an area under Palestinian civilian control, and de facto security as well, is particularly palpable.
We decide to leave and go back up to the dirt path we came from. The road and the houses that are being built are getting farther and farther away and finally disappear beyond the mountain, and we return again to the desert in all its glory. The damage hasn't reached here yet, but there's no one willing to stop the speeding train. The desert is going down the drain, and almost no one seems to care.
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