Palestinians told they’re barred from gas stations in Ariel settlement; authorities deny issuing notice

Palestinian workers in the Barkan Industrial Park in the northern West Bank say they received notices from their employers yesterday stating that they were no longer permitted to enter gas stations in the nearby Israeli settlement of Ariel. The notice appears to have been circulated via WhatsApp. According to the labor rights organization Ma’an, which represents Palestinian workers, in at least one case the instruction was also delivered verbally to workers during the workday.

The number of Palestinians using Israeli gas stations in the West Bank has risen in recent weeks because of an acute fuel shortage at Palestinian stations, which Palestinian officials attribute to an economic crisis involving Israeli banks. The crisis has left Palestinian businesses unable to deposit cash, preventing them from converting cash income into bank balances and continuing their normal commercial activity.

The WhatsApp message states that “following an update received from security officials at the Ariel Municipality, Palestinian workers are prohibited from entering the Ten gas station in western Ariel and the Sonol gas station at the entrance to Ariel, whether arriving in their own vehicles or accompanying an employer or another individual to refuel or fill jerrycans.”

It adds that “beginning tomorrow [today, July 30], the directive will be enforced, and any Palestinian worker arriving at these stations may be detained, questioned and barred from working.”

Following the notice, the Ma’an workers’ organization has sent a legal warning letter to the Ariel Municipality and the management of the Barkan Industrial Park, arguing that “the directive has no legal basis” and unlawfully infringes on fundamental rights.

The Ariel Municipality, however, denies any involvement in the notice.

Responding to a request for comment from The Times of Israel, the municipality says: “The Ariel Municipality and all of its departments operate strictly in accordance with the law. We are unfamiliar with the message that was circulated, and the instruction described is not known to us as one issued by the municipality’s security officials.”

The Barkan Industrial Park refers inquiries to the Samaria Regional Council, under whose authority it operates. The Samaria Regional Council says it is unfamiliar with the notice.