Half the village lies in Israeli territory, the other half in Palestine. How is that possible? Our friend, an Israeli peace activist, visited such a place and wrote this piece for @nullandvoidmedia.
The Green Line—the internationally recognized border between Israel and Palestine—runs right through the village of Barta’a in the West Bank.
After the 1948 war, Barta’a was divided into two parts: one came under Jordanian jurisdiction, the other under Israeli control. Following Israel’s occupation of the West Bank in 1967 and the establishment of the Palestinian Authority in 1994, the Jordanian part of the village became part of the PA.
In the 2000s, the separation wall was built, slicing off significant chunks of land that were designated for the future Palestinian state. Parts of Palestinian Barta’a ended up de facto on the Israeli side of the wall. The 4-meter-high concrete barrier cuts straight through residential areas—you can even see a house built directly into the wall in one of the photos.
Palestinians who found themselves on the Israeli side are forced to apply for permits—not to work or travel, but simply to live in their own homes. These permits, unlike temporary residency visas, do not grant access to Israeli territory but allow the holder to remain only within the borders of East Barta’a. To visit relatives in the Israeli part of the village, special authorization from the Israeli occupation authorities is required.
And yet, both parts of Barta’a—Palestinian and Israeli—once formed and still feel like a single, cohesive community. We met with the mayors of both sides, and both insisted: “We are still one family.”
There are no police, no medical or social services in Palestinian Barta’a. People manage on their own. And according to local administrators, they manage remarkably well. East Barta’a has become something of a mini Middle Eastern Hong Kong—goods from across Palestine flow in, sold at prices far cheaper than in Israel. Israelis often cross over to shop for groceries, furniture, household items, and building supplies at a fraction of Israeli prices.
Around 7,000 people are officially registered in East Barta’a, but due to local business and housing demand, the real population is likely 25–30,000. Every day, residents must cross a checkpoint to reach the rest of the West Bank for work, school, or medical care. The checkpoint closes at 6 or 7 p.m., and residents have been pleading with Israeli authorities for years to extend its hours. Their requests are routinely denied. The occupation authorities are unmoved even if someone needs urgent medical attention during the night.
Since October 7, 2023, the checkpoint situation has worsened. The military regime also affects the private lives of Barta’a residents: if one spouse holds Israeli citizenship and the other is Palestinian, the latter is almost never granted Israeli citizenship due to the Citizenship Law. Children born into such mixed-status families face legal and social obstacles as well.
A visit to Barta’a pulls back the curtain on Israeli propaganda and reveals how the machinery of oppression really works. It is not always bloody—but it is daily, banal, and exhausting. It operates through demeaning hours-long waits at checkpoints, endless bureaucratic permit systems, harsh penalties imposed by military courts, and the segregation of families.
Most residents of East Barta’a have never seen the Mediterranean Sea—even though their families have lived for generations in what is now Israel. Meanwhile, Israeli citizens can freely move not only throughout the country but also travel visa-free to over 160 countries, including the Palestinian territories.
Barta’a is not the only town split by the Green Line. The town of Baqa al-Gharbiyye and the village of Baqa ash-Sharqiyya were also once a single entity.
This trip was organized by the Mossawa Center for the Rights of Arab Citizens. We thank them deeply.
— Mikhail Safonov, activist, published via the Null and Void channel
Photo by the author.
https://t.me/nullandvoidmedia/562
