The Confiscation of Water Tankers in Khirbet Tana

As such, it is obvious that Israeli occupation forces were not content with the demolition of the shelters and caves of the residents of the Khirbet. Their attempts went as far as depriving the population of the most basic right of access to water. The confiscated water tankers were used to transport water from the town of Beit Furik to Tana to meet the drinking needs of the population, their animals as well as their irrigation needs.

 

The tankers were hauled by the occupation forces to the colony of Makhoura (located 2 kilometers away from Tana) while giving the owners fine notices obliging them to pay more than NIS 3,000 in fees for “removing and storing the tankers”. The tankers are owned by Wasef Abu Al Souood, Majed Afeef A’aref Hanani, Fursan faris Hussein Hanani, Faris Fursan Hanani, Ridwan qasem Salman Khatatbeh, Mohammad Tawfiq Nasasra, Mahmoud Ahmad Mahmoud Nasasra, Fayez Yousef Mohammad Hanani, Ibraheem Abdel Qader Ibraheem Hanani as well as Fawzan Mohammad Fawzan Nasasra. All are residents of Khirbet Tana.

 

Mr. Atef Hanani, the mayor of Beit Furik, expressed the following for the Land Research Center (LRC)’s field researcher: Israeli occupation forces are taking advantage from the vast area of Khirbet Tana (estimated at 6,000 dunums) and the fact that it has a small number of Palestinians living in it. They are, basically, stealing the land; the colony of Makhoura was established on Tana lands as to be used as a pretext by occupation forces to control the entire area. These forces uproot and terrorize the population through a number of means including demolishing their homes, shelters, bruxes, caves, grazing areas and depriving them of their most basic right which access to water. The racism of the Israeli occupation forces is unparallel.

 

It has to be noted that Khirbet Tana is officially administered by the town of Beit Furik. It is considered to be the food basket for Beit Furik and other nearby villages and towns due to the fertility of its lands and the presence of large quantities of water in the area.

 

As such, the Khirbet (and Beit Furik in general) has been a prime target for Israeli occupation in order to control it; more than 18,000 dunums (50% of Beit Furik’s lands including Khirbet Tana) have been confiscated by occupation forces over the years. The colony of Makhoura as well as a “Firing Zone” were established atop the confiscated lands. Khirbet Tana has been declared as a “Closed Military Zone” since the early 1970’s.

 

 

It also has to be documented that in February 2009 the so-called Israeli “High Court of Justice” issued a binding decision to demolish all agricultural bruxes in Khirbet Tana and to evict all of the 50 farmer families (around 300 people) in addition to the confiscation of a third of its lands. That is despite the fact that Khirbet Tana was present even before the occupation began. Yet, the Israeli goal is to remove all of the residents as to grab their lands. As such, Tana has been totally demolished six times since the year 2005.