Confiscating 44 Dunums of Nahhalin village land in Bethlehem Governorate

Violation: confiscating around 44 dunums.

Location: Nahhalin – Bethlehem

Date: January 31, 2012-04-03

Perpetrators: the Israeli Occupation Army

 

On January 31, 2012, the Israeli Occupation Army issued a confiscation order for 44 dunums in Nahhalin. One of the farmers found the order thrown in one of the fields which are planted mostly with cypress and prunes. According to the Village Council Head , the purpose of the order is annexing the lands to the nearby colony of Bitar Illit. The Village Council assigned Gayyath Nasser, an attorney of law, to object to the order in Israeli Courts.

  

 

The village received its share of the Israeli oppression throughout the years. It lost thousands of dunums to various Israeli colonization activities including Israeli colonies, by-pass roads, and the Israeli separation plans. The Israelis tend to fully control areas west Bethlehem in where Ezyon colonial compound is located. In 2005, Israel made public their intentions to keep annex the large colonial compounds in the West Bank; the likes of Ezyon, Ariel, Maale Adummim among others will be within the ‘Israeli State’ borders for good. In addition, Israeli colonists of Bitar Illit pump the waste water into the main water spring in Nahhalin which feeds the wholre village, rendering it unusable.

 

The village is located 9 km to the south west of Bethlehem and 3.5 km to the east of the armistice line of 1949. It is edged by Bitar Illit and Hadar Bitar colonies (north), al Khader (east), Wadi Fukin and the armistice line (west), and number of Israeli colonies (Rush Tzorim, Ealazr, Allon Shevut, and Ezyon) (south).

 

The village’s total area is 17250 dunums including 496 dunums of built-up area, inhabited by 7460 people according to the PBS statistics of 2007. Israel has confiscated 2988 dunums of the village lands for colonial expansion purposes. 5 colonies inhabited by more than 30,000 colonists reside over the village lands. They are all part of Ezyon colonial compound which hold 11 colonies within.

 

Israel has confiscated more than 2988 dunums of Nahhalin (17.3 % of the village area) to strengthen colonial projects in the area, projects that includes 5 colonies which inhabit 30,000 colonists nowadays.