{"id":2166,"date":"2026-07-13T16:16:01","date_gmt":"2026-07-13T16:16:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/emekshaveh.org\/en\/?p=2166"},"modified":"2026-07-18T16:30:39","modified_gmt":"2026-07-18T16:30:39","slug":"solomons-pools","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/emekshaveh.org\/en\/solomons-pools\/","title":{"rendered":"URGENT ALERT: Israeli Politicians Escalate Campaign to Seize Solomon\u2019s Pools in Area A"},"content":{"rendered":"

Over the past two months, the heritage site known as \u201cSolomon\u2019s Pools\u201d, south of Bethlehem in Area A, has become the focus of an increasingly coordinated campaign by Israeli ministers, Knesset members, settler organisations and the military to transfer the site to Israeli control.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Solomon\u2019s Pools in blue line<\/p><\/div>\n

Downl0ad as a PDF<\/a><\/p>\n

What began as a settler-led initiative has rapidly developed into an official political campaign. Senior ministers have entered the compound under military escort, called for it to be \u201creturned to Israeli hands,\u201d rejected the continued relevance of the distinction between Areas A, B and C, and announced plans for direct Israeli investment and the raising of the Israeli flag.<\/span><\/p>\n

The campaign is now supported by a legal opinion from the <\/span>Kohelet Policy Forum <\/span><\/a>arguing that allegations of Palestinian damage or neglect allow Israel to suspend relevant provisions of the Oslo Accords and intervene directly at archaeological sites in Areas A and B. It is worth noting that the Kohelet Policy Forum\u2019s legal opinion lacks a factual or legal basis that could enable the expropriation of the site as the authorities seek to do. Kohelet\u2019s involvement is particularly concerning considering the major role it has played in promoting the coalition\u2019s attempts at judicial reform.<\/span><\/p>\n

It is important to note that in recent years, the Security Cabinet approved expanding the enforcement powers of the Staff Officer for Archaeology unit into <\/span>Areas B<\/span><\/a> and A<\/span><\/a> in a move that violates the Interim Agreement between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Although as of late May, the Cabinet’s decisions had not yet been implemented through a decree by the IDF\u2019s Commander of the Central Command, it is possible that increased operations in locations such as Solomon’s Pools and Mt. Ebal, which aim to undermine the separation of powers between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, will expedite the process to implement the Cabinet’s decisions.<\/span><\/p>\n

Together, these developments represent a dangerous new stage in the weaponizing of antiquities and cultural heritage as a pretext for extending Israeli authority into Palestinian-administered territory. A takeover of Solomon\u2019s Pools would establish a precedent for intervention at hundreds of sites across Areas A and B and further dismantle the already weakened political and legal framework governing the West Bank.<\/span><\/p>\n

Archaeological and Historical overview<\/b><\/p>\n

Solomon\u2019s Pools, known in Arabic as Burak Sulayman, consists of three monumental reservoirs forming part of the ancient water system that supplied Jerusalem, Bethlehem and the surrounding region. The compound lies between the Palestinian communities of Artas and al-Khader.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Solomon\u2019s Pools in yellow line<\/p><\/div>\n

Because they were continually filled with water, Solomon\u2019s Pools were never thoroughly excavated. However, a post-1967 survey revealed they were the hub of a massive 70-kilometer water network dating back to the Early Roman period. The pools later underwent renovations in the Byzantine, Mamluk, and Ottoman periods.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The pools collected water from surrounding springs and aqueducts, channeling it to Jerusalem via the Upper Aqueduct (likely ending at Hezekiah’s Pool) and the Lower Aqueduct (flowing to the Temple Mount\/Haram al-Sharif). Due to their continuous use over millennia, they are a multi-layered historical site shaped by countless successive cultures, including the Palestinians who live there today.<\/span><\/p>\n

In modern times, the site has been a focus for both tourism and heritage preservation. During the Oslo Accords the site was designated as part of Area A and transferred to full Palestinian civil and security control. During the late 1990s Yasser Arafat planned to develop the pools into a major tourist and hotel complex as part of his “Bethlehem 2000” vision. Later, in 2009, the site\u2019s advanced engineering earned it a spot on an initial inventory of 20 major Palestinian heritage sites compiled in cooperation with UNESCO. Despite this recognition, the pools were never advanced to the official tentative list of Palestinian World Heritage sites.<\/span><\/p>\n

A coordinated political campaign<\/b><\/p>\n

Despite the multicultural nature of the site, and the continuing plans made by the Palestinians to maintain the site and develop it as an important Palestinian heritage site, a series of high-profile Israeli visits that have taken place in recent weeks have attempted to portray Solomon\u2019s Pools as a neglected site that Israel must take over in order to safeguard it from destruction. However, as demonstrated below, the main reason for this orchestrated campaign is the aspiration to lead to the cancellation of the Oslo Accords and promote steps for the annexation of the West Bank.<\/span><\/p>\n

During a visit in May, Diaspora Affairs Minister <\/span>Amichai Chikli declared<\/span><\/a> that Israel must stop thinking in terms of Areas A, B and C. His statement explicitly connected the campaign over Solomon\u2019s Pools to the broader objective of erasing the territorial distinctions established under Oslo.<\/span><\/p>\n

On May 25, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and members of the Religious Zionism Knesset faction entered the compound under military protection. MK Zvi Sukkot entered one of the pools, while participants called for the site\u2019s transfer to Israeli control.<\/span><\/p>\n

In late June, Minister and Security Cabinet member Ze\u2019ev Elkin toured the site with Efrat Council head Dovi Shefler and <\/span>stated<\/span><\/a> that Solomon\u2019s Pools must be \u201creturned to Israeli hands.\u201d Elkin claimed that its designation as Area A resulted from an error in the Oslo maps.<\/span><\/p>\n

The campaign escalated last week on July 7, when Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu <\/b>announced on Channel 14<\/b><\/a> that his ministry would allocate NIS 10 million to the site, take control of the compound and raise the Israeli flag.<\/b> He claimed that the pools formed part of the ancient water system supplying Jerusalem and the Temple, adding:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe are here as the victorious generation to tell you: you will not rewrite heritage, you will not harm our heritage sites, and you will not lay the foundation stone for a mosque that would destroy these pools.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Eliyahu stated that the funding would be used to rehabilitate the compound, make it accessible and \u201cstrengthen the Jewish presence\u201d at the site. It is worth recalling that a few months ago, Minister Eliyahu stood at another site, the Hasmonean Palaces near Jericho, and made it clear that anything built over Jewish heritage (whether real or imagined) <\/span>would be destroyed<\/span><\/a> by the State of Israel.<\/span><\/p>\n

These declarations have been accompanied by military-backed settler incursions, restrictions on Palestinian access and government policies expanding Israeli enforcement into Areas A and B.<\/span><\/p>\n

In a further escalation, according to Israeli and Palestinian reports, the military <\/span>subsequently prevented <\/span><\/a>Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa from reaching the compound and cancelled a Palestinian ceremony to lay the foundation stone for a planned mosque.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Military-backed incursions and the removal of Palestinians<\/b><\/p>\n

On July 2, Emek Shaveh staff visited Artas and Solomon\u2019s Pools and met the deputy head of the Artas Local Council, local residents and the director of the cultural centre responsible for managing the compound.<\/span><\/p>\n

Their testimonies describe a significant change in Israeli practices since October 7, 2023, with a sharp escalation during the past three months. According to residents, Israeli forces now arrive before organised settler groups, establish checkpoints, close access roads and prevent Palestinian vehicles from approaching. Palestinian families and swimmers already inside the compound are ordered to leave, after which settlers are permitted to enter under military protection, including for ritual immersion.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Israeli visitors en route to Solomon\u2019s Pools as seen on Palestinian social media in recent weeks and (sharpened by AI by Emek Shaveh)<\/p><\/div>\n

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Israeli visitors at Solomon\u2019s Pools in recent weeks as seen on Palestinian social media (sharpened by AI by Emek Shaveh)<\/p><\/div>\n

These incursions have repeatedly generated violent confrontations. Residents described the use of stun grenades, tear gas and rubber-coated bullets.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Footage from June 26 shows Palestinian families caught amid stun grenades and tear gas during what had begun as a family outing. Images published on Palestinian social media show settlers entering the area under close military escort.<\/span><\/p>\n

still from Bethlehem Community video on Telegram from 26.6.26 showing dispersal of Palestinians from Solomon\u2019s Pools by the IDF using crowd control measures.<\/span><\/p>\n