Alternative Information Center - Settler Violence Report 58

On January 15, three Israeli airplanes sprayed a huge field of wheat. The land belongs to many families from the Jenba, Mgair El-Abid, Tabban and other villages south of Yatta, itself situated south of Hebron. The land is close to the settlements of Ma?on, Susya and Carmel alongwith the outpost of Havat Ma?on. The settlers have been denying the farmers access to their land for a long time. O?thman Jabareen, a farmer, reports: ?early in the morning we saw three airplanes spreading chemicals on our fields that were recently planted with wheat and other winter crops. The chemical caused the shoots to whither. Israeli planes from a Civil Administration unit known to us as ?the airplane unit for protecting the environment? have conducted such violations in the past. We know that this policy is aimed to prevent us from using our land in that area, for the purpose of assuming control of the land on behalf of the settlements. Tens of families lost their crops this year, and with them lost a vital source of their income.?

On January 17, tens of settlers from Qiryat Arba? built a tent and planted trees on land south of the settlement. This was leveled two months ago and belongs to Mahmoud Jaber Bouti. Whilst doing that, settlers threw stones at some Palestinians houses, preventing Palestinians from using the main road in that area. All this happened within the plain view of the soldiers that were in the site.

On January 17, settlers from Admot Ishai ?Tal Romayda?, in the old city of Hebron, renewed their attacks on Palestinians houses in the site. Mohammed Hamed Abu A?sha reports: ?all through the day, settlers stoned our house and others, preventing us from leaving the houses. The soldiers that were in the area did nothing to stop them.? The settlers continued their harassment the next day as well. They also prevented students from going to their schools. Tayseer Abu A?sha reports: ?starting in the early hours of the morning, settlers came to the street leading to our houses and stopped students, ordering them to return to their houses. Some of the settlers were armed, and when we went to see what happened they attacked us by sticks and stones, injuring Mohammed Abu A?sha, 70.?

On January 18, settlers from Harseena, in the old city of Hebron, began to put a new fence north of the settlement. Eighteen Dunams belonging to Omar Ajrab were surrounded by the new fence and expropriated in order to expand the settlement on the northern side. This land was leveled last month. Omar Ajrab informed the AIC that ?the old fence already surrounded 50 meters of our land, and lands belonging to Soltan family. The new fence is only ten meters away from our house?.

On January 24, settlers from Susya, south of Hebron, allowed their livestock to enter the cultivated land of Palestinian farmers from Qawawis village, east of the settlement. Mosa Najjar, a farmer, reports: ?these settlers that are staying on the land we were deported from, last month, by a military order, used to enter the land with their livestock. Their livestock ate around forty Dunams of cultivated land, belonging to many families from the village. The soldiers that were in the area prevented us from entering the land and did nothing to stop the settlers.?

On January 25, five armed settlers from Qiryat Arba? attacked Husni Abu Su?aifan, 38, and Mahmoud Jameel Abu Su?afan, 24, causing them both injuries. Jameel Abu Su?afan reports that ?during the night, about ten armed settlers from Qiryat Arba? came to our houses, near the settlement fence and threw stones at us. Our house is located in Haret Masharga El-Foqa, southeast of the settlement. They took Husni and Mahmoud out of the houses and attacked them with sticks and stones. Both were moved to Alya Hospital for treatment, with back and hands injuries.?

On January 18, tens of armed settlers from Bat Ayin, in the Gosh Etzion settlement block, attacked the lands of families from the village Khallet Skariya, south of Bethlehem. The land that was attacked belongs to the Salah Shaheen and Mohammed Mosa Husain families. Shaheen said: ?during the night settlers attacked our land, sabotaged about 100 grape vines and cut water pipes. Settlers also smashed the windows of a car belonging to Ayman Oda?.

Nablus and the North of West Bank Region

On January 19, settlers and soldiers uprooted about five hundred olive trees belonging to families from Deir Ballot, in the Qalqiliya district. Nesfat Khafsh, from the Land Defense Committee chairman, reports that ?about 30 soldiers accompanied ten settlers, among them the notoriously known settler Rami from Peduel, and the representative in Israeli Civil Administration for the region. Without having any military order they uprooted 500 trees.? Kamal Mousa, Mayor of the village, reports: ?the purpose of this attack on the trees in the area is to expand the nearby settlements of Peduel and Alei Zahav.? The Apartheid Wall is also being built on that area.

On January 19, tens of Kahanist settlers from Tapouh and other settlements blocked the main road known as the ?Cross Samaria road.? The settlers gathered at the junction leading to Hares, Kufel Hares and Marda villages and blocked the roads of those villages with big stones, preventing Palestinian cars from moving and damaging some of their windows. This was done as a "protest" against the removal of some Caravans near Tappuh by the Israeli army. On the next day they repeated the same assaults.

During the last two weeks of January, tens of armed settlers came to Joseph?s Tomb in Nablus on several occasions during the night under army protection. The settlers shot in the air. The soldiers imposed curfew on many places near the Tomb. Ibraheem Dowekat, who lives near the Tomb reports: ?tens of settlers came many times to the Tomb; which is supposed to be under Palestinians authority control according to the peace agreements; they claimed that they wanted to pray, but they keep shooting in the air and cursing Arabs. All the time that the settlers were in the Tomb, the Army imposed curfews on the areas near the Tomb?.

On January 17, Jawad Haraz Allah, from Ya?bad, in the Jenin District, received a military order to uproot two hundred and fifty olive trees planted within five Dunams. The order claims that the trees are located close to the settlement bypass road that leads to Mevo Dotan and that because of this reason it is announced as a closed and confiscated area.? Jawad explains: ?I used to work on the land for tens of years, by this order I lost a significant part my family income.