Menu

Argument: Israeli-only roads were built to protect against attack

Issue Report: Israeli settlements

Support

David Meir-Levi. “Occupation and settlement: the myth and reality”. Front Line Magazine. June 24, 2005: “It is also important to note that the so-called ‘apartheid roads’ did not exist prior to Arafat’s 1994 ascent to power, nor are they apartheid. During the decades from 1967 on, Israelis and Arabs used the same roads, many of which ran as main streets through the towns and villages of the West Bank, bringing in millions of tourist dollars to hitherto impoverished small-town Arab merchants. Only after Arafat began his terror war, and Israelis driving through Arab towns found themselves in mortal danger, did Israel build the ‘Israelis only’ (not ‘Jews only’) roads. Rather than take punitive measures against Arab offenders who murdered or injured Israeli motorists (Jewish, Christian, and Moslem), the government decided instead to create this by-pass system so that Israelis could reach WBGS destinations without exposing themselves to terrorist attacks.”