A Messianic Jews point of view

Building started on Israel's controversial wall in 2002 and has been a contentious issue. It's 403 miles in length and 8 meters high and is costing 150 million dollars. Palestinians feel they are locked inside a huge Prison. Israel says they need security. Who's right and who's wrong?

Will the wall bring security? Is this corporate punishment? Paul Calvert spoke with a Palestinian and a Messianic Jew to get two views from two sides of the fence.

Greg Olson is a Messianic believer in Jerusalem with an alternative viewpoint to the wall. I asked him about the wall, is it good or is it bad?

Greg: Well it's a very opinionated question Paul, the wall from a stance of security has been good for Israel and for Jerusalem. Since they built the wall we have had very few terrorist attacks so that has been good for the residents of Jerusalem. We understand it has been hard. It was hard to determine where to put this wall for security purposes, we have families who live in Bethlehem that sued to make sure they get put on the other side of the wall, they did not want to be on the Palestinian side, so it was very controversial and I think Israel knew that when they built it that it would be controversial but the main idea was security at the time.

Paul: Now many Palestinians feel that it was a land grab, would you agree with that?

Greg: My opinion is that it's not a land grab in a sense that since the Oslo accord in 1993 and the western world accepting that they wanted two states, if the Palestinian authority want to become a legitimate sovereign state they must expect there to be borders from its territory and Israel's territory and I think many of these peace people didn't think about this properly and I think that many of the poor Palestinians, who I understand it's very difficult for, who make their living and income from working in Jerusalem, many of them second generation, it's been a shock for them because they were thinking autonomy, our own thinking, our own rule, our own vote, but I don't think they realised that with two states, borders are a natural part of two sovereign states.

Paul: How has the wall changed things for the residents of Jerusalem?

Greg: I think there is a sense of peace. It's not an attractive thing when you see it, for the people who live outside of Jerusalem. It's kind of ugly, but again for the people of Jerusalem there's a sense of security because it's actually had that affect. If they had built the wall then we had bus bombing after bus bombing I think the Jerusalemites would have said "why did we do this it's done nothing to increase security", but it has had a tangible effect we've not had a bus bombing in a long time.

Paul: Now Palestinians can't come into Israeli territory without permission and Israelis cannot go into Palestinian territory, how do you bring Palestinians and Israelis together, because there is a wall right down the middle?

Greg: It's difficult. You know there's been many peace initiatives, Peres Peace Centre and all these different things where they are trying to bring the people together to have peace and build relationships, but again it gets back to this national mindset, I come from America and I have an American attitude, you're from the UK you have a British mindset, so we have this mindset that, ok I'm Israeli, I'm Palestinian and the division and the wall comes up because you have borders; but it's been difficult for the people to get together and especially for believers, it's difficult because we have believers in Bethlehem, we have believers in Jerusalem, real believers who really love the Lord but that wall has made it difficult.

Paul: Many Palestinians would say it's corporate punishment would you agree with that?

Greg: In a practical sense when they say that I can see what they mean, but maybe their Government didn't do such a good job explaining to them that if you want a state it's going to create a border. Now they built the fence for security, Ariel Sharon said it would not be the final peace agreement, the final border, knowing that it would probably have to be moved in different places but he never said there would not be a border, so I think it's been very difficult. It's right now a security fence. Do I personally believe that it could become part of the final status quo if there was a peace agreement between the two? I do think part of it will become a border eventually. We have to pray that the Palestinian people will be able to live their lives as Palestinians with their government if that's what they want to believe and have, but that does cut them off from Jerusalem. I do know for a fact that they are trying to build a corridor round East Jerusalem, so there will be a continuous road and private autonomy between Ramallah, East Jerusalem and to Hebron so that is something that is being negotiated. I understand their feelings about that, but I wouldn't say its corporate punishment. Israel's not trying to hurt the Palestinian people.