The Confiscation of 21 Dunums of the Villages and Towns of Qarawat Bani Hasasan, Sarta and Haris – Salfit Governorate

Violation: Occupation forces issue confiscation orders of 21 dunums in the towns and villages of Salfeet.

Date: March 1, 2012.

 

At the beginning of March 2012 Israeli occupation forces issued a military order calling for the confiscation of 21 dunums in the vicinity of the industrial colony of Burqan under the pretext of establishing a section of the Racist Israeli Wall around it. Picture 1 shows the colony with the racist wall surrounding it.

 

The Military Order Number T/11/11 was titled “Placing Hands on Lands” and was issued on January 16, 2012. It indicated that the targeted lands are from the town of Qarawat Bani Hassan (Parcel 3, Location Sareeba), the village of Sarta (Parcel 2, Location Najmat Al Shami) and the village of Haris (Parcel 2, Location Khallet Hadida). Occupation forces gave the owners of the lands a mere 7 days to object to the confiscation order.

 

 

Moreover, the Order stipulated that “Placing the Hands” on the said lands will end by the end of January 2014. Yet, the experience of the Palestinians indicates that the occupation forces do not abide by such deadlines as they are considered to be only cosmetic to enable the occupation to show the temporary nature of the Order. The non-abiding of these dates reflects the nature of the occupation which aims at grabbing as much Palestinian lands as possible to be used for colonial and expansion purposes. It has to be mentioned, also, that in the year 2005 occupation forces confiscated large areas surrounding Burqan colony for the purpose of the establishment of the Racist Wall which made it easier for the colony to expand through the installation of a number of factories.

 

The colony of Burqan was established atop lands confiscated from the villages of Haris, Buroqeen and Sarta in the Governorate of Salfeet. The nucleus of the colony was established in the year 1981 and grew to encompass about 2,720 dunums as of 2006. Its built-up area is 349 dunums with a population of about 1,300 colonists as of 2005. There are currently a number of factories for a number of specializations including oils, plastics and leads which contribute to the pollution of the Palestinian environment through the dumping of the waste (solid and liquid) into the lands of Sarta.