Settlers attempt to create an outpost in the Hebron District (AIC archive photo).
Hebron and the South of the West Bank
On 5 December, around
30 settlers from Hebron district tried to occupy
al-Jumjuma hill, to the east of the town of Halhul,
in the north of Hebron.
It seems that the settlers intend to build a new settlement there. The targeted
land belongs to several families from the Halhul and it is located near the
bypass road 60. The hill was declared military closed area by the Israeli
military and access to the main road which leads to the land was closed off by
an iron gate, to prevent the farmers from reaching their land to work on it.
During the evening of 7
December, settlers from the Susiya settlement, on a hill in the southern
portion of the Hebron
district, uprooted 32 olive trees belonging to Yasser Radi Nwaj’a from Yatta. The
targeted trees were located to the west of Susiya. Nasser Nawaj’a, an activist
in the local committee said: “It is not the first time that the settlers cut
and uproot the olive trees in this area, such actions have happened many times,
because they are trying to annex our land to their settlement. We brought many
cases to the Israeli police and the army about these aggressions, but they
never stop them.”
On 10 December, tens of
settlers from the Hebron
region occupied al-Jumjuma hill to the east of Halhul town. In the last months
local people saw the settlers many times coming to the place in order to build
a new outpost there. The mayor of Halhul, Ziyad Abu Yousef, reports that the
settlers’ aggressions to take the hill, composed of 60 dunam of land planted of
grapes, began after an Israeli Army officer declared the hill a closed military
zone. Months ago they started closing the main road to the hill with an iron
gate, encouraging the settlers in their project of occupation. The land belongs
to the Karja, Sa’da and Zama’ra families.
On 27 December, residents
from the Israeli town of Shekef,
located inside the green line to the west of Hebron District, cut around 30
olive trees belonging to families from the Dair al-Asal village. Gazi Ismal Shawamrah.
The Local Council reports that the Israelis cut the trees located on the Palestinian
side of the Separation Wall and feed their goats and sheep from the fields. According
to the mayor of the village, Hamad Yousef Dardon, around 2,200 olive trees have
been transferred to the west side of the Wall. These actions are done with
intent to confiscate the land, taking the most important sources of income of
the Palestinians living there.
On 29 December, the
Israeli military began construction of a new bypass road near the Bait Haggai
settlement to the south of the city of Hebron.
Around six dunam belonging to families from al-Rehiyya village will be
confiscated for this road. The residents initiated protests and to demonstrations
against the road, but on 31 December, the Israeli military attacked the
protestors by using teargas.
On the morning of 30 December,
tens of settlers gathered on bypass road 60, to the east of Halhul, to march and
started throwing stones at Palestinians cars, damaging five car windows. One
driver, Khader Aqel from Halhul, said that the settlers threw stones at his car
while he was driving by the main junction, to the east of his town. The
settlers also engaged in such actions in many other places on the main road that
links Hebron to Bethlehem. These attacks started after an
Israeli military operation in the Hebron District (on 27 December) during
which two Israelis and two Palestinians died.
Nablus and north of the West Bank
On 29 December, a group
of armed settlers from the north valleys attacked tilled fields in the
Palestinian village
of Frisiyya, in the Tubas
District. The settlers damaged around two dunam of land planted with vegetables,
and attempted to steal a tractor. It is not the first time that such actions and
attacks happen in this area. The residents of Frisiyya are now afraid that the
settlers will come again. The Israeli Police, however, have never taken the
matter seriously, despite numerous complaints raised by the farmers in the
northern region.
|
AIC Projects 
