Setting 5 Vehicles ablaze in Bitin village – Ramallah governorate

 Violation: setting five vehicles ablaze and partially burning a building.

Location: the main road connecting Bitin and Der Dibwan.

Date: December 19, 2011.

Perpetrators: Ufar colonists.

Victims: villagers of Bitin.

 

OnDecember 19, 2011, a group of colonists attacked the village and abused the locals and their properties. Soon after midnight, colonists of Ufra sneaked into Bitin and set 4 vehicles, parked infront of a building, alight. The assailants sprayed the cars with gas and started the fire which totally consumed 4 cars and drastically damaged a fifth. The blazing flames damaged the 15-apartment-building located on the road connecting Der Dibwan with Bitin.

 

The delay in the arrival of fire trucks, because of the closure of the main entrance of the village which has been blocked since 2001, caused more damage. On the other hand, Israeli soldiers tried to secure the safety of the assailants and moved them out of the village. Also, the soldiers handed some villagers interview notifications issued by the Israeli Intelligence Agency.

 

The attack spread fear and terror among the locals who thought that they were safe in their homes; it shows that the colonists are becoming more daring in their attempts to spread chaos and destruction. The residents of the on-fire building awareness prevented a real catastrophe; they managed to combine efforts to put the fire down before it spreads any further. Table 1: damage:

 

No.	Victim	damage
1	Ra’ed Amara	A 1983 Fiat was completely burned
2	Ahmad abu Sunbul	A Mercedes commercial van, property of the Coca Cola company was torched
3	Saif Judeh	A 1998 Volks Wagon Passat was burned
4	Shahd Qaddura	A Mitsubishu Super Lancer was torched
5	Naji Mistef	A yellow plated, 2007 Hyundai, partially damaged
6	Rabih Hasan	8 apartments (a total of 15) were partially damaged as well as the lost of the guard room on the entrance of the building

 

 

 

 

Bitin is located 3 km to Bira city; in the past, a road that edges Beit El colony used to connect it with its Palestinian surrounding; however, the road has been blocked since 2001. The locals have been using an alternate 18-km-long route. Bitin total area is 5400 dunums including 1200 dunums of built up area, inhabited by 2300 people.