Alternative Information Center - Settler Violence Report 66

? On May 16 at 11pm, settlers from Ma?on, east of the town Yatta, set some three Dunams of wheat on fire. The land belongs to families from the village Moqfera. The settlers prevented the residents from extinguishing the fire. In addition, Yatta?s Civil Defense cars were unable to reach the place because of the Israeli checkpoints. Ibraheem Abu Hassan from Yatta?s Civil Defense Center reports: ?we informed the authorities that the settlers burnt lands of crops near and went to extinguish the fire. The soldiers stationed in the checkpoint between Yatta and the settlement stopped us and forced us to return.?

? On May 16 at 1pm, two settlers from the outpost Beit Hadassa in the old city of Hebron threw a cup of tea on student Raja? Abu Aisha while she walked through the Al-Shohadaa? Street. Raja? was studying in the Kordoba School near the outpost. She reports that ?such acts of violence are part of the daily aggression of the settlers which the students in the school face. A day earlier, settlers stoned our school while we were on break. We were forced to get back inside the classes.? In the same day many houses in Wadi El-Nasara, south of Qiryat Arba?, were attacked by settlers. The houses that were attacked belong to the Jaber and Da?na families and two of their windows were shattered. Soldiers stationed in the main road prevented the Palestinian residents from using it.

? On the afternoon of May 18, settlers from the outpost of Admot Ishai renewed their attacks on houses bordering the outpost. Tayseer Abu ?Asha reports that ?the settlers stoned my house as well as those of my neighbors. The incident took place in front of the soldiers who did nothing to stop the settlers? aggression. A day earlier, settlers from the same outpost poured hot water on my two sons Shareef, 6, and Ibraheem, 5, when they played near our house. On the noon of May 22 settlers stoned Mohammed Abu ?Asha, 72, and he was injured in his back. We face such aggressions on a daily basis and I think that their purpose is to force us out of our house because it is located inside the fence of the outpost.?

? On May 21, the leg of Abed El Hadi Qafisha was injured by a stone that was thrown at him by settlers while he was walking to his house near Al-Haram Al- Ibrahimi (Cave of the Patriarchs). Dozens of settlers chased the student in the old city of Hebron and stoned the residents. The incident took place during the collective marches of the settlers in the occasion of Jewish feasts.

? On May 23, soldiers burned 90 olive trees in Tal Romida near the outpost of Admot Ishai?. The trees belong to the Heikal family. Hana? Abu Haikal reports that 6 Dunams of olive trees were totally burned and that the soldiers prevented the passage from the municipality faire department. This is most likely the first step in the annexation process in order to expand the outpost.?

Nablus and the North of West Bank

? In the morning of May 17 some 500 settlers from many settlements in the north gathered near Mitzpe Yizhar, south of Nablus, to protest the army?s decision to dismantle the outpost. The settlers closed the entrances to five Palestinian villages (Hawwara, Einabus, Madama, Burin and Asira al Qibliya). Ahmed Odeh, the head of the Hawwara municipality, reports: ?dozens of settlers, some armed, came to the main entrance of the village and started firing from their guns in all directions. Half an hour later, soldiers arrived at the scene and imposed curfew on the village. The settlers also burned 80 olive trees that belong to many families from the Hawwara and Einabus villages.? Baker Ghaleb from the Boreen village reports that ?around 100 settlers came from Yizhar and stoned houses after they placed huge blocking stones at the entrance of the village.? Alam Nassar from Madama reports: ?around 50 armed settlers entered the village and opened fire to the air. The soldiers who later arrived at the scene imposed a curfew on the residents. The settlers then burned some 7 Dunams of wheat. Not only that the army failed to dismantle the outpost but the settlers added two tents to it.?

? On May 17 at 2 am, tens of armed settlers came to Joseph Tomb near Balata refugee camp, east of Nablus; the army imposed a curfew on the 70 thousand residents till 9am. The settlers raised slogans against the Arab and shouted curses through loudspeakers.

? On May 22, settlers from Enav prevented the farmers from Kafr al Labad, east of Tulkarm; from reaching their fields for working in. the farmer Mahmmoud Jab?itee reports that he and other farmers couldn?t reach their land after the armed settlers prevented them. Ahmed Jab?itee, 80, was injured after five armed settlers attacked him by using stones and hands.

? On May 28, settlers from the Hananya outpost, west of the village Al khadr, cut 15 olive trees in the ?Ain Qases site near the outpost. The land belongs to Imad Salah who says: ?the settlers prevented me from entering my land by using their dogs that chased the farmers. This happens more than once this week.?

? On May 29 at 9am, settlers from Tekoa, south east of Bethlehem, attacked farmer Khaleel Jebreel, 55, who was injured in his left eye. Khaleel was taken to the hospital in Beit Jala and was placed in the intensive care room because of the seriousness of his injury. Khaleel reports that three of the ?security men? of the settlement attacked him while he was working in his land near Tekoa. The settlers used the back of their guns in their attack and also stoned him. They left him on the ground bleeding from his head and eye. He was later evacuated by a Palestinian ambulance to the hospital.

? On May 29, dozens of settlers from Kfar Tapuah, north of Salfit, attacked the village of Yasuf and fired in the direction of the main mosque. The residents resisted and attempted to prevent the settlers from reaching the Mosque. During the confrontation, the settlers opened the fire on the residents. The Waqf and the Religions Ministry issued statement condemning the repeated settlers? aggressions on holy places. This phenomenon is recently increasing in many West Bank towns (consult previous AIC reports).

? On May 16 the Army continued to build the Apartheid Wall in both sides of road # 86 toward Kissufim. The work started ten days ago and dozens of Dunams were leveled while uprooting hundreds of trees. Many Palestinian houses will be enclaved inside the Wall. The houses of Abu Haddaf and Samiree families are now completely isolated north of the road. The houses of Abu Sanger, Abu Musleh, Abu Rizig and Sawarka families are now trapped inside the Wall. The continuation of the work will isolate additional 20 houses.

? On May 15, the Army demolished three houses in the village Ar Ramadin, south of Hebron, claiming that the houses were built illegally. The residents report that the demolition aims to continue the expansion of the nearby settlement Eshkolot. The houses belong to Hani Jamma?een, Yaser Jamma?een and Mosa Jamma?een.

? On May 19 the Army issued a new order to confiscate some 300 Dunams from many villages east and south of Bethlehem. The aim of the order is to establish a new settlement road from east of Beit Sahour to the south and the west to reach the settlement Efrata. The residents found the order in their fields.

? On May 22, 12 new caravans were brought to the Humesh settlement south of Jenin. Fateem Salah, member of the Land Defense Committee in the village Burqa reports that the settlers are going to establish new outpost near the settlement following their confiscation of 150 Dunams two months ago from the land of his village. The settlers opened new roads and established electricity net.

? On May 23, the Israeli Civil Administration issued ten demolition orders for houses that belong to residents of Hebron. The houses are located in Bowaira and Khalit Sharabati between Qiryat Arba? and the Harseena settlements. The order states that the houses were built illegally. The owners were given three days to contest the order. Abd El-hadi Hantash of the Land Defense Committees explains: ?the work in the area between the two settlements is going on daily - new roads are being opened and new houses are built in the settlements. Palestinian land is routinely confiscated trees are uprooted. The purpose is to create a geographic unity between the settlements east of Hebron and to force the residents out. The new orders should be understood within this general framework of planning.?

? On May 23, Israeli engineers and soldiers put signs on land located west of the settlement Migdal Oz, east of Kfar Ezyon. The land belongs to the Brigeet family from the village Beit Ummar. According to the order that was issued three months ago, some 500 Dunams will be confiscated in order to expand the settlement to the west.

? On May 24, the Army distributed an order to confiscate more than 500 Dunams to the east of the Green Line, west of Hebron. The land belongs to many Palestinian families from the Beit ?Awwa, Al Majd, Sikka and Um ?Akaf villages. According to the order, the aim of the confiscation is to build the ?security wall.? The owners were given seven days to contest the order.