Illegal Dispossession through archaeology

JVL Introduction

Another dreadful story of Israel’s heinous actions in the West Bank where, this time but not for the first time, archaeology is the weapon of choice.  (One among others was Susiya whose residents were expelled from an archaeological site in 1986 but nothing has happened to the outpost that took over).

Right now, surrounded by settlements, the military and overseen by a brutal military occupation, the people of Sebastia are facing expulsion and dispossession in the name of creating “a “national park” for Israeli settlers on one of the most significant Palestinian historical sites in the West Bank…”  The archaeological site, currently belonging to the village is “being considered for UNESCO World Heritage status…” and “Palestinian residents of Sebastia say that the ruins bear witness to Palestine’s centuries of interactions with conquering empires, while revealing Palestine’s impact on those empires in return.”

But none of this matters to the Israeli regime who want to ignore everything other than Jewish presence in the history of the area as yet one more reason to exclude Palestinians who have lived and worked the land there for centuries.

(please note that the original has photos by the author)

LL

This article was originally published by Mondoweiss on Fri 12 Dec 2025. Read the original here.