The deadly shooting attack that struck the Barkan Industrial Park on Sunday was brutal in more ways than one, as it dealt a massive blow to one of the most successful symbols of Israeli-Palestinian collaborations in Judea and Samaria.
Located just north of the cross-Samaria highway, Barkan Industrial Park is home to 164 factories that employ some 4,200 Palestinians and 3,000 Israelis. The waiting list to set up facilities in the park, one of the most sought-after industrial zones in Israel, currently includes 60 companies.
Diplomats – ambassadors, parliamentarians, congressmen and others – visit Barkan weekly to get a first-hand impression of successful Israeli-Palestinian coexistence.
Barkan CEO Ronny Houri told Israel Hayom Sunday that the industrial park is free of the tensions that characterize Israeli-Palestinian relations.
Rafael Alon, owner of the Alon Group facility where the shooting took place, echoed the sentiment, saying he was stunned by the fact terrorism had hit what he and his employees have come to see as their home away from home.
"I want to believe that this bastard [the terrorist] was a bad seed sent here by evil, cruel people," he said. "Until now I believed this [economic cooperation] was the way to make peace. Today, I feel betrayed."
Eran Hermon, CEO of Fresh Orange Ltd., whose facility is located just moments from Alon Group, spoke of the harmony that characterizes Barkan.
"We're like one big family here. Jews and Arabs work together in harmony here, we even celebrate holidays and family events together," said Hermon, whose company employees 60 Palestinians and 20 Jews.
Moshe Levron, the export manager of neighboring plastic accessories manufacturer Twitoplast, echoed the sentiment: "We employ 120 people, half are Palestinians and half are Israelis. There's no friction here, not over wages – all of our employees get equal pay – and not over anything else.
"If we have three or four more industrial parks like Barkan, peace will come," he asserted. "There are factories here that employ 4,000 Palestinians who are happy to come to work in the morning. These people are like my brothers, like my family. We trust them to run things."
Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan said, "For the past seven years, we have been bringing diplomats and public opinion leaders from all over to the world to witness the coexistence at the Barkan Industrial Park. Unfortunately, after 35 years of cooperation, it has suffered its first terrorist attack.
"We, like everyone else in Israel, are stunned by this, but it will not break our spirit," he said.
Palestinians wary
The Palestinian workers at Barkan, and especially those employed by the Alon Group, expressed concern of what the future may bring in the wake of Sunday's shooting.
Many said they fear the attack would prompt sticker screening ahead of receiving work permits in Israel, while some said they fear losing their work permits, should Israeli authorities decide to deny them at this time.
"Everyone's afraid for their livelihood now," one employee said, adding he believes the gunman, Ashraf Walid Suleiman Naalwa, was not nationalistically motivated.
"If he wanted to kill Jews he could have done so. You can see on the security footage that he's running away without shooting anyone who was in his way."
Another employee said, "I live in Qalqilya and I have relatives who are waiting for work permits in Barkan. They'll probably have to wait a lot longer now.
"Barkan is an isle of sanity and peace and even if he [the terrorist] was nationalistically motivated, Hamas and Islamic Jihad are trying to capitalize on the attack and encourage Palestinian youth to carry out similar attacks.
"Where's Abu Mazen [Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas]? Why doesn't he denounce this attack? At the end of the day, it's the factories in Barkan that help provide for thousands of Palestinian families, which is more than he and the PA are doing. At the end of the day, we'll be the ones to pay the price," he said.
Economy and Industry Minister Eli Cohen announced Sunday that his office will pursue the expansion of the Barkan Industrial Park.
"This terrorist attack will not deter us. We will keep developing the economy in Judea and Samaria. We won't let anyone undermine true coexistence," he said.
