The charge of “Jews-only roads” in the disputed territories is part of the apartheid libel that attempts to portray Israel as a state that discriminates against Arabs on racial or religious grounds. The comparison is made not only with apartheid South Africa but also past racial segregation in the United States.
The charge, however, is false.
There are roads where different populations are separated from each other but this separation is based not on religion, race or ethnicity but on nationality. Jews-only roads simply don’t exist.
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As Michael Totten wrote in response to this charge leveled by antisemitic journalist Helen Thomas:
She’s right that no American would tolerate white-only roads. Israelis, likewise, would never tolerate roads for Jews only. That’s why such roads don’t exist.
The roads she’s referring to in the West Bank are Israeli, and they’re not just for Jews. Israeli Arabs can drive on them, and so can non-Jewish foreigners, including Arab and Muslim foreigners. Palestinians were once able to drive on them but have not been allowed to do so since the second intifada, when suicide bombers used them to penetrate Tel Aviv and Jerusalem in order to massacre people.
Alan Johnson expands:
There are some roads that have been closed to some Palestinian traffic due to repeated shootings, bombings, and other attacks on Jewish and Arab road users. Before such attacks there were no restrictions. The Apartheid Smear ignores three facts: Israeli traffic is also banned from Palestinian areas because of security concerns; ‘Israeli traffic’ includes the vehicles of over one million Arab citizens of Israel who have also faced terrorist attacks; and all road closures are temporary and subject to constant review by the Israeli courts.
The Israeli-only roads are not an example of apartheid. The motives of the Israeli government officials are not to create a permanent situation of discrimination based on race but a reasonable, temporary and emergency response to deadly security threats.
Related reading: The False Israel-Apartheid Libel
Josh Hasten writes:
Israel has often come under fire for developing transportation arrangements for Jews and Arabs, whether they are shared or segregated. Palestinians have their own buses and taxis servicing their villages, even within Israeli-controlled territory, while special bus companies including Egged primarily service Jews. When segregated systems are developed, Israel is often accused of apartheid.
. . .
Interestingly, while Arabs can travel freely throughout Judea and Samaria, Jews are limited in which roads they can travel. Under Israeli law, it’s illegal for Jews to enter any territories labeled as Area A, or under full Palestinian Authority security and administrative control. It is illegal to enter, as the IDF is unable to operate freely in these areas even if a Jew is in danger. Large red signs warning Israeli citizens not to enter these areas have dotted the entrances to Palestinian Authority-controlled towns and villages.
Related reading: Do You Know Your Area A, B and C?
“Different colored license plates”
In an interview for Jacobin magazine, US Representative Rashida Tlaib accused Israel of being a racist state, claiming among other things:
There are different colored license plates if you are Palestinian or Israeli.
Indeed, Israel issues yellow license plates while the Palestinian Authority issues green license plates. Tlaib is correct about the different colored plates but this has nothing whatsoever to do with race.
US vehicle license plates are different from Canadian ones. Similarly Israeli plates belong on vehicles registered by Israel’s Ministry of Transport while the Palestinian Authority is responsible for issuing plates to Palestinian vehicles. Israeli Arabs of any religion can buy or rent a car that is registered in Israel.
Israeli and Palestinian vehicles may have separate license plates but they still share many of the same roads in the disputed territories.
The different rules for different drivers and vehicles are based not on race, religion or ethnicity but on citizenship. This isn’t racist, it certainly isn’t apartheid and there are no “Jews-only roads.”
Route 443
Route 443 is one of two main road arteries linking Jerusalem to the Tel Aviv coastal region. The road cuts through the West Bank from Jerusalem and continues via Modi’in before joining Route 1, Israel’s other major road between the country’s major cities.
Route 443 has also been referred to as an “apartheid road” by Israel’s detractors. Yet again, this is a case of legitimate Israeli security concerns being twisted to misrepresent Israeli policy as somehow racist.
As Yaakov Lappin explains:
Fifteen years ago, during the Second Intifada, the highway experienced many security incidents, particularly firebombing and rock-throwing attacks on cars. That led the Israeli government to ban Palestinians from the highway. The country’s High Court of Justice, however, deemed that decision illegal in 2007.
“The High Court said that the road runs through Judea and Samaria, so the state cannot prevent Palestinians from driving here. It told the state to manage the security risk. That’s where we come in,” said [Lt.-Col. Arik] Yaakobi.
Today, anyone—Israeli or Palestinian—can drive down Route 443 in the sections that run through the territories (though most cars are driven by Israelis).
Palestinians are, however, need to pass through checkpoints on the access roads in order to enter 443. It’s also worth noting that Israeli drivers are forbidden from entering those access roads to Palestinian villages due to the security risks involved.
There are no “Jews-only roads” but there are roads where only Jews are forbidden from driving.
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