India, Dec. 28 -- The village of Battir, on the West Bank hills near Bethlehem, is a land of olive groves, grape vines, fig trees and seven natural springs that feed ancient agricultural terraces of rich soil planted with green beans, zucchini and eggplant. It is nestled in a series of farmed valleys with hand-made stone terraces dotted with historic Roman ruins. Farming is done by traditional farming methods passed down for centuries.
IIPT Founder and President Louis D'Amore announced today that the Town of Battir - "Palestine's Paradise Valley," the "Tuscany of the Middle East" - will be declared an IIPT/ Village of Peace.
Little did Louis know that years later, this area would be the site of a heavily disputed new settlement by Israe...