The Israeli Defence Ministry this week issued a list of special arrangements for the West Bank during the month of Ramadan.

The orders eased the restrictions on movement for Palestinian civilians in ways unprecedented since the start of the First Intifada in 1987.

Women and all men above the age of 40 will be allowed to enter the Green Line areas freely. Buses will take the faithful from Ramallah to Jerusalem and the number of entry permits from the Gaza Strip will be tripled.

This is in line with official Israeli policy in the absence of a diplomatic process towards a two-state solution with the Palestinian Authority. The idea is to try to keep the peace by easing certain aspects of life for Palestinians under occupation.

There is also the unspoken hope that if everyday life in the West Bank becomes more bearable, not only will there be less chance of another intifada, but also the diplomatic pressure on the government may be reduced.

'Mechanics of occupation incompatible with efforts to improve life for Palestinians'

But not all parts of the Israeli establishment seem to have got the memo.

Last week, the Supreme Court decided not to allow the Palestinians building planning powers in Area C - the parts of the West Bank under full Israeli control. Other rulings in recent weeks have upheld a series of demolition orders by the Defence Ministry's civil administration in the West Bank. One of those orders - to dismantle the Palestinian village of Sussiya - was widely covered in the international press.

These moves underline the degree to which the mechanics of the occupation are incompatible with efforts to improve civilian life.

Ministers explain in their air-conditioned offices how, even without a peace process, an "economic peace" is possible. At lower levels, however, most officials are still focused on the welfare of the Jewish settlements. Development in the Palestinian areas is, at best, a much lower priority and often seen as a threat to the settlements.

That is why Palestinian housing projects in Area C are often blocked and demolished, and why planning permission for a road and water pipeline for the new Palestinian town of Rawabi was held up for three years.

There is no lack of security reasons, bureaucratic obstacles and procedures that can be used to justify this policy on the ground but, in the end, a lot of it boils down to the political pressure the settlers hold over many of the officials involved in the decision-making processes. Some of those officials are settlers themselves, including one of the Supreme Court justices.

The bottom line is this: the belief that the occupation is somehow sustainable, or that Israel can keep a lid on things until a way is found out of the diplomatic impasse, is an illusion. Stability cannot be maintained while Israel's policies in the West Bank remain so clearly discriminatory.