Palestinians protest Pompeo’s tour of West Bank settlement winery

Protestors waved Palestinian flags and chanted slogans against Pompeo’s anticipated visit to the Psagot Winery, part of the Israeli colonial settlement of Psagot, established on stolen Palestinian land in Jabal al-Tawil, just outside the West Bank city of al-Bireh.

They urged the international community to put an end to the Israeli occupation, including the colonial settlement construction, land grab and home demolitions.

The protest was attended by a host of officials, including Deputy Chairman of Fatah Mahmoud al-Aloul and Mahmoud Shaltaf, a representative of al-Bireh Municipality.

Addressing the protestors, al-Aloul said that Pompeo’s tour to Psagot is not surprising for the Palestinian leadership, particularly that all successive US administrations were biased towards the Israel occupation.

He asserted that US President Donald Trump’s administration is not only biased towards Israel, but is also complicit in consolidating the Israeli occupation and colonial settlement projects given its radical pro-Israel moves, including the recognition of Al-Quds as Israel’s undivided capital, declaring settlements as no longer violating international law as well as recognizing Israel’s sovereignty on the occupied Golan Heights.

Meanwhile, Shaltaf said that the Psagot colonial settlement is constructed on stolen lands mostly belonging to the residents of al-Bireh, which has become the scene of repeated settler assaults and deprived from tapping into its agricultural lands.