Israeli colonists and army attack dozens of Dutch aid projects in the West Bank

Dozens of Dutch-funded projects in the West Bank have been destroyed in recent years by Israeli settlers or soldiers, writes I invest in collaboration with De Groene Amsterdammer and Trouw. According to the research, the number of destruction has increased significantly since the war began on October 7, 2023.

It is known that Israel is constantly expanding illegal settlements in the West Bank. Since the start of the war, Palestinians in the area have also been the target of attacks and attacks by settlers supported by the army. Israeli ministers Smotrich and Ben-Gvir are settlers themselves and advocate for the annexation of the West Bank.

According to Investico, 59 Dutch aid projects have been targeted for acts of sabotage in the Palestinian territory since 2017. The research was carried out in collaboration with De Groene Amsterdammer and Trouw.

An example mentioned is the destruction of a water tank, paid for by the Netherlands, in a Palestinian village. NOS correspondent Nasrah Habiballah recently spoke to a resident of this place, who showed a video of the incident:

Another example is that more than a ton of solar panels donated by the Netherlands were stolen from a Palestinian village. This is said to have happened when settlers moved to Wadi al-Seeq last October attack and chase residents.

The damage to Dutch aid projects is huge, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs admits to Investico. This response also shows that the Israeli authorities have not provided any compensation for their destruction and seizure.

The ministry says that the Netherlands will make every effort to obtain compensation for damages if an incident is brought to its attention. The House of Representatives passed a motion in 2016 to document this type of damage, make it public and notify the responsible Israeli authorities. But according to the journalists, this is hardly done in practice. Furthermore, the government would be reluctant to act harshly and hold Israel accountable.

The Foreign Office says the subject is raised regularly in talks with Israel. But in a third of known cases, the Israeli authorities were not responsible, the authors say, or it is unclear whether any action was taken. This is determined on the basis of requested email exchanges between civil servants and government documents.

“Good morning, this weekend’s devices under a Dutch project were seized,” it is reported from an email dated March 12, 2018 that was circulated within the ministry. “A recently constructed road was also destroyed elsewhere.” According to the journalists, officials suspect that settlers are responsible for this activity near the city of Nablus.

First, the question is “how high / fast should our approach be” towards the Israeli authorities about the incident. Later, officials suggested that the Netherlands should leave the matter alone. It would be recommended “not to pay extra attention” to the House of Representatives and not to ask for an explanation of Israel.

In this way, the destroyed road could be repaired “quietly” by the local population so as not to “incite renewed destruction”.

Palestinians receive very little permission for construction projects in parts of the West Bank, unlike settlers. In 2019 alone, 700 incinerators and excavators were seized, wrote the newspaper Haaretz at the time. According to the newspaper, it is a deliberate strategy to prevent international aid and construction projects for the Palestinians.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stresses to Investico that the ministry is speaking out against Israel’s settlement policy. Middle East expert Erwin van Veen from the Clingendael Institute claims that the Netherlands could use several methods of pressure against Israel, but this has not been done.

When asked, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said they would stand by the answer as seen in the Investico article.