AL-KHADER, Israeli-Occupied West Bank -- The growl of bulldozers on a rocky, thorn-filled hilltop yesterday announced a new round of conflict over the expansion of Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
Israeli soldiers and police arrested 45 Palestinians and sympathetic Israelis who tried to block the bulldozers from carving out a new Jewish neighborhood of 500 houses near Bethlehem.
The confrontation brought calls by Palestinians for an end to their negotiations with Israel until Israel stops adding to Jewish settlements.
"The Israeli government must make a choice -- peace or settlements," said Saeb Erakat, Palestinian minister for municipal affairs. "They can't have both. And this shows they chose settlements." He reportedly was knocked out and his glasses smashed by an Israeli soldier during the protest.
Environmental Minister Yossi Sarid, a liberal member of the Israeli government, called for a halt in the construction pending a review of the case. Two other parliament members were removed by police after standing in front of the bulldozers.
About seven Palestinians were hurt in the pushing and shoving on the rough hillside. Israeli soldiers cleared the way for settlers to uproot dozens of olive tree saplings planted by the Palestinians.
"This peace process does nothing for us," said Amina Salah, 50, whose front tooth was broken in the scuffle. "The settlers have taken the land that came from our grandfathers."
The dispute over Jewish settlements has been relatively quiet since the September 1993 Israeli-Palestinians peace accord. That pact put off resolution of the settlements issue for three to five years.
Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, who has been publicly critical of Jewish settlers, promised after his election in June 1992 that government support for the settlements would be curtailed.
Palestinians said they believed the settlements would be frozen until later negotiations. But they complain there has been a recent spurt in land confiscations by the Israeli government and new construction in the West Bank settlements.
They say the government is undertaking a frantic building campaign in advance of the peace talks. Israeli members of the "peace bloc" demonstrated with the Palestinians.
"This is part of a big offensive by the government of Israel to annex this whole territory and end the negotiations before they start," said Uri Avneri, an Israeli protester.
