Many things have changed since Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions (ICAHD) founder and executive coordinator Jeff Halper made aliyah nearly 30 years ago: LP’s and Beta Max have become CD’s and VCR’s only to become MP3 players and DVD’s. However, unlike the immense technological change, one aspect of Minnesota-born Jeff Halper’s life has remained a constant: his views towards Israel. Proclaiming himself to be “a proud lefty for peace” and a “child of the 1960’s,” Halper has become well known for his views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

While throughout his entire life he considered himself to be politically active, Halper began activism as a profession when he founded ICAHD almost seven years ago. “The organization started in 1997 out of a collective worry that the recently elected Benyamin Netanyahu’s anti-Oslo platform would effectively end the peace process.” ICAHD, which is a recognized Israeli NGO, claims to be a “non-violent, direct-action group [that] opposes and resists Israeli demolition of Palestinian homes in the Occupied Territories.” House demolitions were chosen as the main thrust of the organization because demolitions “expose the reality of how the occupation works,” Halper said. “The occupation, whether it is military or administrative in the case of demolitions, is a proactive Israeli policy that has seemingly eliminated any potential for peace.”

European Union funding and some generous benefactors heavily support the daily operations of ICAHD. Without giving numbers, Halper admits that ICAHD can only use EU money for literature and the main office in Jerusalem and not on house rebuilding. When asked why, Halper admitted, “house reconstruction is illegal, therefore, the EU cannot support it.”

Currently, Halper is touring through various cities in the United States, speaking to church groups, universities, activist groups and even, some congressmen. Cities on his tour include: Washington; Philadelphia; Pittsburgh; Des Moines, Iowa; and Kansas City. While Halper is a convincing and gifted speaker, he has often been accused of misquoting statistics and distorting views of the situation in Israel.

For example, Halper argued that 75 per cent of the Palestinian houses that have been demolished during the past four years of intifada, have actually had people living in the houses at the time of demolition. However, government reports and even UN reports have continually indicated that almost 90 per cent of the demolished houses are not even completed by the time of demolition. The foundations are destroyed after Israeli courts rule the structure to be illegal.

Also, Halper stated that “Israel does not grant building permits to Palestinians.” This statement is simply untrue. As noted academic Justus Weiner discovered in is research for his book about the status of Jerusalem, roughly 95 per cent of Palestinians, who actually apply for building permits, receive them. Weiner also discovered that most Palestinians simply do not bother with the lengthy process of acquiring a permit and would rather pay the general fine and hope their house is not demolished.

Halper continued by saying that over half of the land in Jerusalem, mostly on the Palestinian side, is slated as “open green space to be used in the future and thus, building is illegal.” While the Jerusalem municipal government has set aside green space to be used in the future which is similar to every major urban centre in the world, there is no proof that a greater percentage of the open green space is on Palestinian land in East Jerusalem.

Finally, Halper argued that the Israeli policy of occupation and expansion is minimizing the potential for a viable Palestinian state in the future. He asserted that Israel is “attempting to take over everything up to the Jordan River and eventually Palestinians will realize that an autonomous state is not plausible.” Halper continued by saying, “once the Palestinians realize this, they will push for inclusion in Israel and the option of voting. This would create a huge problem because Israel could not remain an ethnically pure Jewish state with such a strong Palestinian segment of the population. However, if it did not allow Palestinians to vote, that would create a Zionist apartheid.”

As you can see, his surprising views attract a lot of attention but Halper seems to enjoy this. “I don’t mind if you think I’m crazy as long as you listen to me,” he said. Crazy is one thing. Fine. What about integrity? Does spreading wild and tendentious allegations about Israel really serve the cause of peace and justice?

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