Why Israel should be expelled from the World Archaeological Congress

Settlers, Archaeologists and Dispossession in Silwan: Archaeologists for Hire
by Yigal Bronner

"Moreover, as the residents of Silwan know all too well, Elad also has the full backing of the Jerusalem Municipality, the National Park Authority, the Israel Land Administration, and the Jerusalem Police. Thus when a few residents filed yet another lawsuit against Elad’s activities last month, the police stormed their homes that same night, and five people were arrested “for theft.” Those courageous enough to file a complaint at the police station itself were also instantly arrested. In short, Elad is the law in Silwan..."

In the early 1990s, a settler organization by the name of Elad (a Hebrew acronym for: To the City of David) began to plot its takeover of Silwan, a densely populated Palestinian neighborhood located a stone’s throw away from the Temple Mount and the Al Aqsa Mosque. Silwan is also home to one of the world’s most important archeological sites – the original Jerusalem where, according to the Biblical story, King David established his capital some 3000 years ago.

Today, ten years later, Elad fully controls Silwan. The Palestinian neighborhood is now dotted with a dozen settler outposts, clearly visible with their watchtowers, flags, and armed guards. Elad also runs the National park and visitors’ center, providing tourists with an extremely one-sided version of history.

Moreover, as the residents of Silwan know all too well, Elad also has the full backing of the Jerusalem Municipality, the National Park Authority, the Israel Land Administration, and the Jerusalem Police. Thus when a few residents filed yet another lawsuit against Elad’s activities last month, the police stormed their homes that same night, and five people were arrested “for theft.” Those courageous enough to file a complaint at the police station itself were also instantly arrested. In short, Elad is the law in Silwan...

But perhaps the most unexpected accomplice of Elad is the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA). [it] is now Elad’s happy subcontractor. For on top of everything else, Elad runs all the excavations in Silwan: it decides where and when to dig and hires the IAA to do the work.

...Many open areas in Silwan have been fenced off as an excavation sites, and the settlers have now sent the IAA to dig under Palestinian homes, probably in the hope that their lives will become so miserable that they will simply leave.

...Elad is also pushing to destroy 88 Palestinian homes to expand the “archeological park" in the area of the neighborhood known as Al-Bustan.

...the excavations run by Elad and the IAA violate professional rules of ethics concerning "equitable partnerships and relationships" between archaeologists and indigenous peoples (as stipulated by the World Archeological Congress) as well as the universally accepted convention on excavation, including excavating in occupied territories (the New Delhi Agreements). That science is being sacrificed to serve a narrow political agenda can be seen from the fact that not one of the historical Muslim buildings in the national park has been preserved, and some were not even documented.

Many Israeli archeologists are unhappy with this situation, though most of them are unwilling to openly criticize the IAA, their main source for jobs and funds. Still, a small group of Israeli archeologists led by Dr. Rafi Greenberg (Tel Aviv University) has established ties with the residents of Silwan and has been lobbying for Elad’s removal from the site. Renowned scholars throughout the world, including many senior historians and archaeologists, have signed a petition to the same effect.

...Shuka Dorfman, a former army general and the current director of the IAA...[warned] against “bringing politics into archeology” and urged “leaving these matters to the decision makers.”

Yigal Bronner's full article here