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Land Confiscation continues Attacks on Palestinians
Latest News, Palestinian Grassroots Anti-Apartheid Wall Campaign, July 6th, 2006

Above: Occupation confiscated and destroyed large swathes of land in Hebron and Jordan Valley.

Occupation Forces have engaged in wide-scale land confiscations as part of ongoing attacks against the Palestinian people. This week saw a flurry of confiscation activity in various parts of the West Bank, and in particular targeting the Jordan Valley. Large swathes of land were confiscated and annexed to nearby settlements. Meanwhile, in Hebron district the Occupation continues to steal land necessary for the construction of its Apartheid Wall.

In the Jordan Valley, 1000 dunums were confiscated from Tubas by a “military order”. These lands are next to the Bigot settlement and close to settler by-pass road number 80. Palestinian owners of those lands refused to accept the legitimacy of the orders. In the past they have stated that the Occupation forbids them to reach their lands because of “military training”. Now, the Occupation confiscates the Palestinian land under the rubric of the “absentee law”, a common tactic to take Palestinian property for the expansion of Zionist activities in the West Bank.

Meanwhile, Apartheid Israel confiscated 400 dunums from Al-Awja, a village north of Jericho to build sniper towers north east of the Al-Awja checkpoint. Al-Awja checkpoint, along with four other checkpoints, forms the central mechanisms to control access from and to the Jordan Valley.

These confiscations represent the Occupation strategy to extend control upon the Jordan Valley, subjugate Palestinians to further attacks and ensure the area becomes totally isolated from the rest of West Bank.

In Hebron, the confiscation order was imposed on Suleiman Mahmoud from Beit Ula village in the northwest of the city. The confiscation was for 25 dunums currently planted with grapes. Suleiman’s land is 100 meters from the Apartheid Wall being constructed around the village. This Wall isolates around 2000 dunums from the same village, mostly planted with grapes and almonds, but also used for grazing cattle.

Also in Hebron district, Occupation bulldozers uprooted and destroyed wide areas of Halhul and Beit Ummar’s lands to construct a Wall around the Karmeh Tsour settlement. Most of the lands were planted with grapes. Villagers rushed to the lands to protect the crops. That led to clashes with Occupation Forces who used sticks and guns to beat the villagers. Many were left injured, while 23 year-old Mosa Hamdan was arrested. However, the resistance of the people forced the bulldozers to stop.

The land theft comes as the Occupation engages in wide-scale attacks in the West Bank and Gaza which, have left over 50 Palestinians dead in the last month.

Above: The resistance of the Palestinian people forced the Occupation bulldozers to stop in many areas.