US bishops protest over Israel's plan to build Separation Wall in Cremisan Valley

Salesian Sister on historic convent land marked for confiscation by Israel

The US bishops support a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and oppose policies that undermine a just resolution to the conflict, such as Israel's decision to re-route the separation wall through the Cremisan Valley, said the chairman of the bishops' Committee on International Justice and Peace in a letter to Secretary of State John Kerry.

In his May 6 letter, Bishop Richard E Pates of Des Moines, Iowa, said the proposal would harm the livelihood of 58 Christian families in the region. He added: "The route will separate a Salesian monastery from a Salesian convent, and will separate both from their lands. The Salesian Convent and Primary School will be surrounded on three sides by the barrier that will confiscate most of the convent's lands."

Bishop Pates echoed the concern of the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, who spoke on behalf of all bishops in the Holy Land in saying that such moves only exacerbate tensions in the region.

"The Cremisan Valley is a microcosm of a protracted pattern that has serious implications for the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict," wrote Bishop Pates. "As the wall moves and constricts more communities in the West Bank, the possibility of a future two-state resolution becomes less likely. Moving the wall and disassociating Palestinian families from their lands and livelihoods will incite more resentment against the State of Israel among residents of the West Bank, not less, increasing the frustrations that can lead to violence."

The full text of Bishop Pates' letter is available online: www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/human-life-and-dignity/global-issues/middle-east/israel-palestine/upload/2013-05-06-Letter-to-Sec-Kerry-on-Cremisan.pdf

Bishop Pates wrote to Kerry's predecessor, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in November 2012: www.usccb.org/news/2012/12-187.cfm