8 nov 2018
Israeli army forces raided on Thursday Abu Dis town, east of occupied Jerusalem, and demolished a memorial for a young Palestinian protester killed by Israeli forces.
Israeli soldiers knocked down the memorial the locals had built to commemorate Mohammad Lafi who was shot and killed by Israeli soldiers in July 2017 while participating in anti-occupation protests.
The occupation army threatened severe punishment over the projected reconstruction of the memorial or the construction of others.
At the same time, Israeli forces targeted Palestinian locals with spates of bullet fire and teargas, sparking clashes.
Israeli soldiers knocked down the memorial the locals had built to commemorate Mohammad Lafi who was shot and killed by Israeli soldiers in July 2017 while participating in anti-occupation protests.
The occupation army threatened severe punishment over the projected reconstruction of the memorial or the construction of others.
At the same time, Israeli forces targeted Palestinian locals with spates of bullet fire and teargas, sparking clashes.
Israeli bulldozers leveled on Thursday morning Palestinian land lots located to the northeast of Akreba town, in the northern occupied West Bank.
Anti-settlement activist Yousef Diriyeh said Israeli vehicles rolled into Akreba, east of Nablus, and bulldozed large tracts of cultivated Palestinian land.
The occupation forces further leveled agricultural roads established east of Akreba to smooth farmers’ access to their lands, shortly after the local municipality finalized construction works.
Anti-settlement activist Yousef Diriyeh said Israeli vehicles rolled into Akreba, east of Nablus, and bulldozed large tracts of cultivated Palestinian land.
The occupation forces further leveled agricultural roads established east of Akreba to smooth farmers’ access to their lands, shortly after the local municipality finalized construction works.
Classes at an elementary school in Khirbet Ibzeik, in the northern Jordan Valley, in the occupied West Bank, were disrupted on Thursday when Israeli soldiers raided the school and destroyed a teaching facility.
School headmaster Firas Daraghmeh said Israeli raided the campus and dismantled a tent used by teaching staff and students.
The soldiers also blocked roads leading to the school and prevented students and teachers from reaching it.
The tent was set up after the army dismantled and seized caravans in the school in October.
Classes at the targeted school, which provides courses for students from grade one to the 6th grade, are taught by four instructors.
Israel does not allow Palestinians to build in the Jordan Valley, which is classified as Area C and makes up over 60 percent of the occupied West Bank.
The Israeli military often demolishes whatever Palestinians build in the area under the pretext of unlicensed construction.
School headmaster Firas Daraghmeh said Israeli raided the campus and dismantled a tent used by teaching staff and students.
The soldiers also blocked roads leading to the school and prevented students and teachers from reaching it.
The tent was set up after the army dismantled and seized caravans in the school in October.
Classes at the targeted school, which provides courses for students from grade one to the 6th grade, are taught by four instructors.
Israel does not allow Palestinians to build in the Jordan Valley, which is classified as Area C and makes up over 60 percent of the occupied West Bank.
The Israeli military often demolishes whatever Palestinians build in the area under the pretext of unlicensed construction.
Israeli municipality bulldozers demolished on Thursday morning a Palestinian facility under construction east of occupied Jerusalem.
According to local sources, an Israeli patrol and municipality staff members stormed Jerusalem’s al-Zai’m village in the early morning and destroyed a building under construction. video
The demolished structure reportedly belongs to the Ja’ba Palestinian family.
Over the past couple of days, Israeli bulldozers reduced a Palestinian residential facility and a commercial structure in occupied Jerusalem to rubble.
According to local sources, an Israeli patrol and municipality staff members stormed Jerusalem’s al-Zai’m village in the early morning and destroyed a building under construction. video
The demolished structure reportedly belongs to the Ja’ba Palestinian family.
Over the past couple of days, Israeli bulldozers reduced a Palestinian residential facility and a commercial structure in occupied Jerusalem to rubble.
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A four-story apartment building, home to twelve people in two families, was destroyed Wednesday by a battalion of around 300 Israeli soldiers who stormed the Shofat camp in Jerusalem with a number of armored D9 Caterpillar bulldozers, turned the street into a temporary military base, and smashed the homes to smithereens. video video
The Israeli authorities claim that the building was constructed without a building permit, but Israeli authorities have refused to grant Palestinian homeowners building permits since the Israeli military began occupying east Jerusalem in 1967. According to the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions, in 2017, Israeli forces destroyed 351 Palestinian homes and other buildings, displacing 528 Palestinian civilians. Since 1967, 48,743 structures have been destroyed by Israeli forces in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. The building destroyed on Wednesday was located near the site of the |
Israeli Annexation Wall in Shofat, in East Jerusalem, and included 12 apartments and a garage.
The owner, Mahmoud Jaradat, told Ma’an news reporters that the building cost him three million shekels, $817,237, to construct. That money is all lost, as Israeli authorities provide no compensation to the Palestinians whose homes they demolish – and instead, often bill the Palestinian owners for the cost of demolition. video
He was issued a demolition order eight months ago, but Jaradat’s lawyer had appealed the case. Despite the fact that the appeal was active, Israeli forces went ahead with the demolition.
The Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions noted in its most recent report for the month of October 2018, at least 50 structures were demolished by Israeli forces in the occupied Palestinian Territories (including East Jerusalem) in the month of October, displacing at least 50 people- including 21 children- and affecting a further 203 people, including 92 children.
Inside Israel, in the Naqab desert, Israeli forces demolished the unrecognised Bedouin village al-Aragib for the 134th time.
All the demolitions and confiscations occurred on grounds of lacking an Israeli-issued building permit.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) noted that in recent decades, Israeli colonial settler organizations, with the support of Israeli authorities, have taken control of properties within Palestinian neighborhoods in East Jerusalem, and 180 Palestinian families are currently facing eviction cases, filed mainly by Israeli paramilitary settler organizations.
The owner, Mahmoud Jaradat, told Ma’an news reporters that the building cost him three million shekels, $817,237, to construct. That money is all lost, as Israeli authorities provide no compensation to the Palestinians whose homes they demolish – and instead, often bill the Palestinian owners for the cost of demolition. video
He was issued a demolition order eight months ago, but Jaradat’s lawyer had appealed the case. Despite the fact that the appeal was active, Israeli forces went ahead with the demolition.
The Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions noted in its most recent report for the month of October 2018, at least 50 structures were demolished by Israeli forces in the occupied Palestinian Territories (including East Jerusalem) in the month of October, displacing at least 50 people- including 21 children- and affecting a further 203 people, including 92 children.
Inside Israel, in the Naqab desert, Israeli forces demolished the unrecognised Bedouin village al-Aragib for the 134th time.
All the demolitions and confiscations occurred on grounds of lacking an Israeli-issued building permit.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) noted that in recent decades, Israeli colonial settler organizations, with the support of Israeli authorities, have taken control of properties within Palestinian neighborhoods in East Jerusalem, and 180 Palestinian families are currently facing eviction cases, filed mainly by Israeli paramilitary settler organizations.
Israeli soldiers abducted, on Wednesday evening, a Palestinian man and confiscated two cars, in Beit Ummar town, north of the southern West Bank city of Hebron.
Media sources in Beit Ummar said the soldiers abducted a Palestinian, whose identity was still unknown at the time of this report, and took him to a nearby military base.
They added that the soldiers also confiscated two Palestinian cars in the town, in addition to stopping and searching dozens of cars, and interrogated many Palestinians.
The soldiers took the car keys from the Palestinians while interrogating them and inspecting their ID cards, and later returned them, except for the two cars which were confiscated and taken away.
Media sources in Beit Ummar said the soldiers abducted a Palestinian, whose identity was still unknown at the time of this report, and took him to a nearby military base.
They added that the soldiers also confiscated two Palestinian cars in the town, in addition to stopping and searching dozens of cars, and interrogated many Palestinians.
The soldiers took the car keys from the Palestinians while interrogating them and inspecting their ID cards, and later returned them, except for the two cars which were confiscated and taken away.
7 nov 2018
The settlement organization known as “Regavim” has filed a lawsuit, in an Israeli court, to demolish the Tahaddi 5 school, in the Beit Ta’mar area, east of Bethlehem.
The head of the office for the Wall and Settlement Resistance Committee in Bethlehem, Hassan Brejiya, said that the lawyer of Saint Yves for defense of land, Emile Mashreqi, told the committee that the settlement institution has filed a racist claim in an Israeli court, against the school, in order to demolish it.
Brejiyya explained, according to the PNN, that the school has been subjected to demolition attempts over and over, and had previously been demolished on the first day of school, for the year 2016-2017.
He pointed out that this institution is responsible for monitoring Palestinian homes in Area C, and is always directing the Israeli Civil Administration to demolish houses and influence the suspension of construction there, as it was behind the administrative demolition in the occupied West Bank, which was stopped recently.
The head of the office for the Wall and Settlement Resistance Committee in Bethlehem, Hassan Brejiya, said that the lawyer of Saint Yves for defense of land, Emile Mashreqi, told the committee that the settlement institution has filed a racist claim in an Israeli court, against the school, in order to demolish it.
Brejiyya explained, according to the PNN, that the school has been subjected to demolition attempts over and over, and had previously been demolished on the first day of school, for the year 2016-2017.
He pointed out that this institution is responsible for monitoring Palestinian homes in Area C, and is always directing the Israeli Civil Administration to demolish houses and influence the suspension of construction there, as it was behind the administrative demolition in the occupied West Bank, which was stopped recently.
Israeli soldiers invaded, Wednesday, Ya’bad town, southwest of the northern West Bank city of Jenin, destroyed a recently paved road, and prevented the Local Council from starting the construction of a multipurpose center.
The Mayor of Ya’bad, Samer Abu Bakr, said dozens of soldiers in several army jeeps, and a military bulldozer, invaded Emreeha area in the town, closed the road leading to the land where the center is planned to be built, and destroyed the newly paved road.
Abu Bakr added that the Local Council which approved the construction, has already started the foundation work for the center, and said that the soldiers prevented him and members of the council, from even approaching the area.
He stated that the planned building, which Israel is trying to prevent, aims at constructing a medical center for women and children, a kindergarten and a daycare center, with a total size of 320 square/meters.
Three weeks ago, the soldiers invaded Ya’bad, and illegally confiscated a mobile home, where an elderly woman lived.
The Mayor of Ya’bad, Samer Abu Bakr, said dozens of soldiers in several army jeeps, and a military bulldozer, invaded Emreeha area in the town, closed the road leading to the land where the center is planned to be built, and destroyed the newly paved road.
Abu Bakr added that the Local Council which approved the construction, has already started the foundation work for the center, and said that the soldiers prevented him and members of the council, from even approaching the area.
He stated that the planned building, which Israel is trying to prevent, aims at constructing a medical center for women and children, a kindergarten and a daycare center, with a total size of 320 square/meters.
Three weeks ago, the soldiers invaded Ya’bad, and illegally confiscated a mobile home, where an elderly woman lived.
The Israeli occupation army on Tuesday decided to demolish a house in Tulkarem belonging to the family of Ashraf Na’alwa, who is accused of carrying out a deadly shooting attack in Barkan industrial zone on October 7, 2018.
According to Israel’s Channel 7, the military commander of the central district gave an order to demolish the house of Na’awla’s parents and reject any objection filed against its demolition.
The intended demolition of the house is slated next Sunday, but the Channel said the family could file a legal objection with the Israeli higher court of justice, which is known for having turned down many similar objections before.
According to Israel’s Channel 7, the military commander of the central district gave an order to demolish the house of Na’awla’s parents and reject any objection filed against its demolition.
The intended demolition of the house is slated next Sunday, but the Channel said the family could file a legal objection with the Israeli higher court of justice, which is known for having turned down many similar objections before.
Dozens of Israeli soldiers invaded, on Wednesday morning, Ras Shehada area, in Shu’fat refugee camp, in the center of occupied East Jerusalem, and demolished a residential building.
The soldiers surrounded Ras Shehada area, and completely isolated it, before demolishing the building, owned by members of Sa’iri family.
The demolished property is located near the illegal Annexation Wall in the area, which became surrounded from several directions.
In related news, the soldiers invaded Khirbat Thaher al-Maleh, south of Jenin, and demolished a wall surrounding a local cemetery, without a prior notice.
It is worth mentioning that, back in February of this year, the army illegally confiscated 492 Dunams of Palestinian land in that area, to use them for the illegal wall and colonies.
The soldiers surrounded Ras Shehada area, and completely isolated it, before demolishing the building, owned by members of Sa’iri family.
The demolished property is located near the illegal Annexation Wall in the area, which became surrounded from several directions.
In related news, the soldiers invaded Khirbat Thaher al-Maleh, south of Jenin, and demolished a wall surrounding a local cemetery, without a prior notice.
It is worth mentioning that, back in February of this year, the army illegally confiscated 492 Dunams of Palestinian land in that area, to use them for the illegal wall and colonies.
6 nov 2018
The Israeli military threatened on Tuesday to uproot dozens of olive trees planted on Palestinian land in the village of Bardala, in the northern Jordan Valley.
Local activist Aref Daraghmeh said the targeted olive trees date back to over 15 years and are located close to civilian homes.
Daraghmeh said the measure makes part of Israeli attempts to rein in Palestinians’ presence in the area, destabilize farmers’ agricultural activity, and seize Palestinian lands in favor of illegal settlement expansion.
Local activist Aref Daraghmeh said the targeted olive trees date back to over 15 years and are located close to civilian homes.
Daraghmeh said the measure makes part of Israeli attempts to rein in Palestinians’ presence in the area, destabilize farmers’ agricultural activity, and seize Palestinian lands in favor of illegal settlement expansion.
Israeli bulldozers demolished on Tuesday a Palestinian residential building in Beit Hanina, north of occupied Jerusalem, under the pretext of unlicensed construction.
Local sources said Israeli forces rolled into al-Ashkariya neighborhood, in Beit Hanina, and cordoned off the area, before they reduced the building to rubble. video
The occupation forces prevented the residents from evacuating their personal belongings and furniture. video video
An ambulance rushed to the scene to evacuate one of the residents to a hospital following a nervous breakdown caused by the arbitrary demolition.
Local sources said Israeli forces rolled into al-Ashkariya neighborhood, in Beit Hanina, and cordoned off the area, before they reduced the building to rubble. video
The occupation forces prevented the residents from evacuating their personal belongings and furniture. video video
An ambulance rushed to the scene to evacuate one of the residents to a hospital following a nervous breakdown caused by the arbitrary demolition.
The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) on Monday dismantled several structures belonging to a Palestinian citizen in the Jordan Valley, east of the West Bank, claiming they were unlicensed.
Local activist Aref Daraghmeh told Quds Press that Israeli forces stormed al-Hadidiya area in the Jordan Valley and embarked on dismantling eight structures used for residential and agricultural purposes before confiscating them.
Those structures were given to Omar Bishara, a local resident, as humanitarian assistance after the Israeli army removed a home and other facilities belonging to him last month.
Local activist Aref Daraghmeh told Quds Press that Israeli forces stormed al-Hadidiya area in the Jordan Valley and embarked on dismantling eight structures used for residential and agricultural purposes before confiscating them.
Those structures were given to Omar Bishara, a local resident, as humanitarian assistance after the Israeli army removed a home and other facilities belonging to him last month.
5 nov 2018
Omar Arif Bisharat stands in front of the rubble of his home in al-Hadidiya.
With attention focused on the planned demolition of Khan al-Ahmar village, other areas of the Jordan Valley have fallen off the radar.
Out of sight, however, Israeli consolidation over the Jordan Valley is continuing apace. Last month, the Israeli army demolished several Palestinian structures in the communities of al-Hadidiya and the al-Musafa area east of Jiftlik village.
In al-Hadidiya, in the northern Jordan Valley, the bulldozers arrived on the morning of 11 October leaving Omar Arif Bisharat and eight relatives, including five children, homeless. Doles of doves soared over the rubble of his home. He raised his hands, struggling to convey the calamity of what had happened to him. In addition to his home, the army demolished six other structures, including several animal pens.
The doves, Bisharat explained, had been raised by his family. Their pen – with baby doves inside it – had been demolished along with the other structures and the birds were now circling their old home. The family’s sheep, too, were homeless.
“I had no idea they were coming,” Bisharat told The Electronic Intifada. “When I saw the military jeep, I thought they were coming for my neighbor’s house,” he added, saying that while he had received a demolition order, he thought the case was pending and he never received notice when his home was going to be demolished.
The threat of home demolition is an ever-present danger for Palestinians in the Jordan Valley, part of the so-called Area C of the occupied West Bank over which Israel maintains full military and civil control. As a consequence, Palestinians are not allowed to build houses, put up tents, dig water wells deeper than 100 meters, build roads or install solar panels or water pipes without Israeli-issued permits. These are almost never granted.
Bisharat and the 112-strong community in al-Hadidiya are now left trying to carve out a life with what little resources these livestock farmers have. The villagers live in sheet metal shacks and tents due to a lack of building permits and limited funds.
The Israeli authorities also refuse to connect the community to the electricity or water grid. Even accessing the village has become a great challenge. The village used to be accessible through a paved road. But when the nearby illegal settlement of Roi was built in 1976, settlers put up gates to block Palestinian access.
Constant struggle
With attention focused on the planned demolition of Khan al-Ahmar village, other areas of the Jordan Valley have fallen off the radar.
Out of sight, however, Israeli consolidation over the Jordan Valley is continuing apace. Last month, the Israeli army demolished several Palestinian structures in the communities of al-Hadidiya and the al-Musafa area east of Jiftlik village.
In al-Hadidiya, in the northern Jordan Valley, the bulldozers arrived on the morning of 11 October leaving Omar Arif Bisharat and eight relatives, including five children, homeless. Doles of doves soared over the rubble of his home. He raised his hands, struggling to convey the calamity of what had happened to him. In addition to his home, the army demolished six other structures, including several animal pens.
The doves, Bisharat explained, had been raised by his family. Their pen – with baby doves inside it – had been demolished along with the other structures and the birds were now circling their old home. The family’s sheep, too, were homeless.
“I had no idea they were coming,” Bisharat told The Electronic Intifada. “When I saw the military jeep, I thought they were coming for my neighbor’s house,” he added, saying that while he had received a demolition order, he thought the case was pending and he never received notice when his home was going to be demolished.
The threat of home demolition is an ever-present danger for Palestinians in the Jordan Valley, part of the so-called Area C of the occupied West Bank over which Israel maintains full military and civil control. As a consequence, Palestinians are not allowed to build houses, put up tents, dig water wells deeper than 100 meters, build roads or install solar panels or water pipes without Israeli-issued permits. These are almost never granted.
Bisharat and the 112-strong community in al-Hadidiya are now left trying to carve out a life with what little resources these livestock farmers have. The villagers live in sheet metal shacks and tents due to a lack of building permits and limited funds.
The Israeli authorities also refuse to connect the community to the electricity or water grid. Even accessing the village has become a great challenge. The village used to be accessible through a paved road. But when the nearby illegal settlement of Roi was built in 1976, settlers put up gates to block Palestinian access.
Constant struggle
A child is surrounded by the debris of al-Musafa, a poor farming community in the northern Jordan Valley
The community was forced to dig a dirt road from the main highway to their village. Without a four-wheel drive vehicle, this road can only be driven down at an arduously slow pace. In winter, the road becomes muddy and cars often get stuck.
In parts, the road coils around piles of soil the Israeli authorities dumped there in attempts to block access.
The sides of the road are cluttered with the remains of water pipes the Israeli army cut after villagers had attempted to connect to the water grid in the nearby village of Tamoun.
Bisharat does not know what to do. The soldiers told him he could not rebuild his house again. But he has no choice. For the time being, he and his family are staying at a neighbor’s house.
The Jordan Valley has always been an area of strategic importance. The strip of land in the east of the West Bank is seen by Israeli military planners as providing vital strategic territorial depth, separating it from its Arab neighbors to the east. As a result, whether the Oslo process was on or not, Israel’s leaders never considered relinquishing control over the area after its occupation in 1967.
Geographically, the Jordan Valley bisects the West Bank. Khan al-Ahmar’s impending demolition comes in part because of its location next to the Jerusalem-Jericho highway. Israel wants to use this area for settlement expansion as part of an overall plan – the E1 plan – to connect illegally annexed East Jerusalem to the Jordan Valley, encircling the city with settlements and dividing the West Bank in two.
The area also holds one-third [pdf] of the West Bank’s water reserves. Once the bread basket of Palestine, it has great potential for development and would be essential in the building of any future Palestinian state.
But some 90 percent of the Jordan Valley consists of Area C, under full Israeli administrative and military control. Israel uses these areas for the expansion of illegal settlements and obstructs all types of Palestinian development.
Al-Musafa
The community was forced to dig a dirt road from the main highway to their village. Without a four-wheel drive vehicle, this road can only be driven down at an arduously slow pace. In winter, the road becomes muddy and cars often get stuck.
In parts, the road coils around piles of soil the Israeli authorities dumped there in attempts to block access.
The sides of the road are cluttered with the remains of water pipes the Israeli army cut after villagers had attempted to connect to the water grid in the nearby village of Tamoun.
Bisharat does not know what to do. The soldiers told him he could not rebuild his house again. But he has no choice. For the time being, he and his family are staying at a neighbor’s house.
The Jordan Valley has always been an area of strategic importance. The strip of land in the east of the West Bank is seen by Israeli military planners as providing vital strategic territorial depth, separating it from its Arab neighbors to the east. As a result, whether the Oslo process was on or not, Israel’s leaders never considered relinquishing control over the area after its occupation in 1967.
Geographically, the Jordan Valley bisects the West Bank. Khan al-Ahmar’s impending demolition comes in part because of its location next to the Jerusalem-Jericho highway. Israel wants to use this area for settlement expansion as part of an overall plan – the E1 plan – to connect illegally annexed East Jerusalem to the Jordan Valley, encircling the city with settlements and dividing the West Bank in two.
The area also holds one-third [pdf] of the West Bank’s water reserves. Once the bread basket of Palestine, it has great potential for development and would be essential in the building of any future Palestinian state.
But some 90 percent of the Jordan Valley consists of Area C, under full Israeli administrative and military control. Israel uses these areas for the expansion of illegal settlements and obstructs all types of Palestinian development.
Al-Musafa
A dole of doves flies over the rubble of Bisharat’s home in the small community of al-Hadidiya in the Jordan Valley.
On the same day that Bisharat’s home was demolished, Israeli occupation forces also demolished the home and several animal pens farther south in the area of al-Musafa.
The house and pens belonged to Odeh Naji Abu Saoud, 23, who recently got married and has a 14-month-old son, Khaled.
“I have a lot to say,” he told The Electronic Intifada, “but I don’t know how.”
Abu Saoud struggles to find the words while setting up a tent – donated, he said, by the Red Cross – for his family, homeless for a second time. Abu Saoud’s previous house was destroyed last year.
“It was a good house. Concrete, with a tin sheet ceiling,” he said.
The Israeli authorities had told him then that he lived in a firing zone, a closed military zone, and told him to move 100 meters down the hill. Abu Saoud and his wife moved to this location and lived in a caravan donated by the European Union, Abu Saoud said. Only two months after moving in, they received a new demolition notice.
“The European Union, the Red Cross … It would be great if they could actually protect the materials they give us,” Rashid Sawafta, a coordinator with the Jordan Valley Solidarity group of activists campaigning for Palestinian rights in the area, told The Electronic Intifada.
From 1970 until 2012, Israel designated approximately 56 percent [pdf] of the Jordan Valley as a closed military zone. According to Sawafta, this has little to do with military needs and everything to do with land appropriation. Declaring an area as a military zone, he said, often precedes the establishment of an illegal settlement.
A Palestinian presence in closed military zones is formally prohibited. Still, and according to human rights group Al-Haq, 38 Palestinian communities live in such areas across the West Bank, of which 80 percent [pdf] are in the area of the Jordan Valley and Dead Sea or the South Hebron Hills.
The Israeli military regularly organizes combat exercises in these areas, during which the army temporarily expels Palestinians from their homes. Fatima – who preferred for her real name not to be used – was given notice in September for her and her family to leave their home in the community of Ein al-Hilweh ahead of military exercises.
When they returned, the family found several of their cows shot. Two were dead, two others died later of their injuries. The death of the livestock was an enormous financial loss for Fatima’s family. One of the cows had not had calves yet and was worth as much as $3,800, said Fatima.
Still visibly troubled by what happened, Fatima said she was certain the Israeli military was planning to expel her and her family eventually.
“But we have no other place to go,” she said.
The Bisharat and Abu Saoud families expressed similar sentiments.
“What can I do?” Bisharat asked. “Wherever I move there will be a racist occupation.”
The Israelis are not interested in Palestinian rights on the land, he added. “The Israelis do not want coexistence. They only want a Jewish state.”
Abu Saoud is now planning to build a home for the third time. This is not just an act of resistance, but one of necessity. There is nowhere to move to and nowhere with the space for livestock to graze.
“I will rebuild my house, and maybe they will come and demolish it for a third time,” he said, shaking his head. “How does my house harm Israel that it needs to destroy it?”
Annelies Verbeek is a Belgian journalist based in Ramallah.
On the same day that Bisharat’s home was demolished, Israeli occupation forces also demolished the home and several animal pens farther south in the area of al-Musafa.
The house and pens belonged to Odeh Naji Abu Saoud, 23, who recently got married and has a 14-month-old son, Khaled.
“I have a lot to say,” he told The Electronic Intifada, “but I don’t know how.”
Abu Saoud struggles to find the words while setting up a tent – donated, he said, by the Red Cross – for his family, homeless for a second time. Abu Saoud’s previous house was destroyed last year.
“It was a good house. Concrete, with a tin sheet ceiling,” he said.
The Israeli authorities had told him then that he lived in a firing zone, a closed military zone, and told him to move 100 meters down the hill. Abu Saoud and his wife moved to this location and lived in a caravan donated by the European Union, Abu Saoud said. Only two months after moving in, they received a new demolition notice.
“The European Union, the Red Cross … It would be great if they could actually protect the materials they give us,” Rashid Sawafta, a coordinator with the Jordan Valley Solidarity group of activists campaigning for Palestinian rights in the area, told The Electronic Intifada.
From 1970 until 2012, Israel designated approximately 56 percent [pdf] of the Jordan Valley as a closed military zone. According to Sawafta, this has little to do with military needs and everything to do with land appropriation. Declaring an area as a military zone, he said, often precedes the establishment of an illegal settlement.
A Palestinian presence in closed military zones is formally prohibited. Still, and according to human rights group Al-Haq, 38 Palestinian communities live in such areas across the West Bank, of which 80 percent [pdf] are in the area of the Jordan Valley and Dead Sea or the South Hebron Hills.
The Israeli military regularly organizes combat exercises in these areas, during which the army temporarily expels Palestinians from their homes. Fatima – who preferred for her real name not to be used – was given notice in September for her and her family to leave their home in the community of Ein al-Hilweh ahead of military exercises.
When they returned, the family found several of their cows shot. Two were dead, two others died later of their injuries. The death of the livestock was an enormous financial loss for Fatima’s family. One of the cows had not had calves yet and was worth as much as $3,800, said Fatima.
Still visibly troubled by what happened, Fatima said she was certain the Israeli military was planning to expel her and her family eventually.
“But we have no other place to go,” she said.
The Bisharat and Abu Saoud families expressed similar sentiments.
“What can I do?” Bisharat asked. “Wherever I move there will be a racist occupation.”
The Israelis are not interested in Palestinian rights on the land, he added. “The Israelis do not want coexistence. They only want a Jewish state.”
Abu Saoud is now planning to build a home for the third time. This is not just an act of resistance, but one of necessity. There is nowhere to move to and nowhere with the space for livestock to graze.
“I will rebuild my house, and maybe they will come and demolish it for a third time,” he said, shaking his head. “How does my house harm Israel that it needs to destroy it?”
Annelies Verbeek is a Belgian journalist based in Ramallah.
Israeli authorities, Monday, notified Palestinians in Khilet Makhoul, a locale in the northern Jordan Valley, of their intentions to seize around 356 dunams of land, according to local activist Aref Daraghmeh, WAFA news agency reported.
Occupation forces, on Monday, seized 155 dunams of land from areas in Al-Lubban village, near Ramallah, northern West Bank.
The head of the village council, Aisha Samhan said that Israeli authorities distributed a notification of their intention to seize two dunams from Khallet al-Shamiya, 141 dunams of Khallat al-Asfoura and 12 dunams of al-Musawadiya area, in order to create a bypass road to the settlement of Beit Aryeh.
Residents in the targeted areas were called upon to prepare identity papers for submission, while competent authorities were notified and implored to stop the implementation of the decision.
Occupation forces, on Monday, seized 155 dunams of land from areas in Al-Lubban village, near Ramallah, northern West Bank.
The head of the village council, Aisha Samhan said that Israeli authorities distributed a notification of their intention to seize two dunams from Khallet al-Shamiya, 141 dunams of Khallat al-Asfoura and 12 dunams of al-Musawadiya area, in order to create a bypass road to the settlement of Beit Aryeh.
Residents in the targeted areas were called upon to prepare identity papers for submission, while competent authorities were notified and implored to stop the implementation of the decision.
The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) on Monday notified the demolition of a Palestinian school and three houses in al-Khalil.
Coordinator of the National Committee Against the Wall and Settlements Rateb al-Jabour told Wafa that the IOF broke into Khillet al-Dabe school, forced the teachers and students out, and handed the administration an order to demolish the school.
Killet al-Dabe school, located in Masafer Yatta village, is attended by 12 students. It was opened by the Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education in October in defiance of the Israeli occupation.
The IOF further notified the demolition of three Palestinian homes in Khirbet al-Maqfara owned by Hamamda family.
Coordinator of the National Committee Against the Wall and Settlements Rateb al-Jabour told Wafa that the IOF broke into Khillet al-Dabe school, forced the teachers and students out, and handed the administration an order to demolish the school.
Killet al-Dabe school, located in Masafer Yatta village, is attended by 12 students. It was opened by the Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education in October in defiance of the Israeli occupation.
The IOF further notified the demolition of three Palestinian homes in Khirbet al-Maqfara owned by Hamamda family.
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