Ha’aretz is reporting that French company Veolia is pulling out of a controversial project to build a light rail system in Jerusalem. The rail is planned to connect West Jerusalem to Israeli settlements in the West Bank, making life in the settlements more viable and sustainable.
The rail project has been targeted by activists in Europe and inside Israel/Palestine, and increasing has become a media story (as seen the Al Jazeera story we posted last week). The Ha’aretz article shows this pressure had a direct role in Veolia’s decision:
Veolia has had to contend not only with the delays and difficulties in building the light rail project itself, but with political pressure at home as well. Two months ago a French court heard a lawsuit by a pro-Palestinian group, demanding that the light rail project be halted.
The organization based itself on an article in French law that allows the court to void business agreements, signed by French companies, that violate international law.
The political pressure on Veolia has been mounting in another direction. According to various reports abroad, the French firm had been losing major projects in Europe because of its involvement in the Jerusalem job. Observers claim that’s the real reason Veolia opted out.
This is a important victory showing that nonviolent grassroots action can help challenge and impede the infrastructure of occupation. The movement to boycott, divest from and sanction Israel will continue to grow until Israeli expansionism ends and Palestinian rights are honored. Talk of cutting off or reducing US aid to Israel is even entering the mainstream media in the US as it becomes more clear that Israeli will not be willing to begin to end the occupation otherwise. As much as we hope that the Obama administration will apply pressure on Israel to force a change, the Veolia victory is a sign that there is no need to wait for others to act.
