Israel threatens to seize ancient water reservoirs near Bethlehem

What Happened

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and politician Zvi Sukkot have threatened to seize Solomon's Pools, ancient water reservoirs near Bethlehem, escalating a campaign for control of West Bank land. In May 2024, Smotrich and Sukkot drove Palestinians from the site to film themselves swimming in the middle pool, declaring 'This is our land.' Settler incursions intensified thereafter, and on 10 July 2024, Israeli soldiers conducted an unprecedented raid, firing teargas while children swam. The site, classified as Area A under the 1995 Oslo II Accord, falls under Palestinian civil and police control. Smotrich has framed the potential takeover as correcting a 'terrible mistake' of Oslo, while pro-settlement voices argue the pools are Jewish heritage and accuse the Palestinian Authority of neglect. The name 'Solomon's Pools' is historically inaccurate, as the reservoirs were built by Herod the Great centuries after Solomon's supposed reign.

Key Actors

Why It Matters

Seizing Solomon's Pools would violate the Oslo Accords' Area A designation, which reserves the area for Palestinian civil and police control. This would set a precedent that Israel can unilaterally appropriate parts of Area A, further eroding the two-state framework and the Palestinian Authority's administrative authority. The move reflects the far-right coalition's strategy to expand Israeli control over the West Bank, suppress Palestinian historical narratives, and tighten the encirclement of Bethlehem by settlements. The pools are a rare recreational sanctuary for Bethlehemites amid creeping settlement expansion, making their loss symbolic of broader dispossession.

Watch For

With Israeli elections approaching in October 2024, further incursions or a formal cabinet decision to seize Solomon's Pools may occur as the issue is used for political mobilization. Monitor any escalation in settler or IDF activity at the site, Palestinian and international diplomatic responses, and potential legal appeals by the Palestinian Authority. Smotrich's pattern of withholding PA tax revenues to impede site maintenance could also intensify, adding pressure to the Waqf's stewardship.