On May 27, 2007, a group of Israeli settlers from Efrat settlement located south of Al Khader village aggressed on 200 vine trees across tens of dunums of agricultural lands in Al Khader village and set fire into them. This action was carried out for the purpose of terrorizing the Palestinian farmers either living close to the settlement's area or own a property in the nearby to increase the territorial lands of the settlement. The targeted Lands are owned by resident Muhammad Ya'coud Da'dou' from Al Khader.
This is not the first time that residents of Al Khader village are subjected to such aggression by the Israeli settlers or even by the Israeli army; in the last few years, the village encountered the belligerency of the Israeli occupation that caused losses and damages to lands and properties. Below is a detailed table of the violations carried out at the hands of Israeli settlers and army since the beginning of the second Intifada and until 2007.
|
Date |
Violation |
Purpose |
Violators |
|
1-Nov- 2000 |
Temporary closing four Palestinian schools located in Area 'C' |
to prevent confrontations between school children and Israeli settlers |
Israeli Army |
|
11-Nov-2000 |
Seizing 8 dunums hilltop |
to establish settlement’s outpost |
The settlers of Elazar & Daniyyel |
|
29-Nov-2000 |
Demolishing a Palestinian house |
under the pretext of building without licensing |
Israeli Army |
|
2-Dec- 2000 |
Seizing 50 dunums of land planted with vine trees |
increase settlement’s territorial land |
The settlers of Efrat |
|
8-Dec- 2000 |
1) Demolishing a 150m long and 8-meter-high wall of Al Khader Secondary School for Boys located in area C. 2) Uprooting more than 50 Olive trees. |
under the pretext of building without licensing
to terrorize Palestinian farmers from working on their lands |
Israeli settlers |
|
3-Nov-2001 |
Digging a deep sewage dump and placing seven mobile homes on this land. |
To establish a new settlement’s outpost called 'Hadaghan'; The land area was 200 dunums. |
Israeli settlers |
|
2-Jan-2002 |
Uprooting 400 Olive trees and vineyard, destroying irrigation wells, water pipe lines, uprooting 20, pine trees and ruining tens of Dunums planted with thyme, sage and cauliflower plants |
to terrorize Palestinian farmers from working on their lands
|
Kfar Etzion settlers |
|
28-Jan-2002 |
Seizing a Palestinian house and turning it into military barrack. |
under the pretext of Israeli Army’s security purposes |
Israeli Army |
|
1-Apr- 2003 |
Denying Palestinian farmers access to their agricultural lands. |
to set foundations for parts-sections of the Segregation Wall |
Israeli Army |
|
3-Apr-2003 |
Demolishing a 150m2 house which belongs to a Palestinian farmer. |
Under the pretext of not having building permits and its closeness to the bypass road in the area. |
Israeli Army |
|
30- Apr -2003 |
Demolishing a two – storey house, turning it into a heap of rubble. |
Under the pretext of not having building permits and its closeness to the bypass road in the area. |
Israeli Army |
|
13-Feb- 2004 |
Demolishing three Palestinian houses belong to Ali Salem Mousa, Mahmud Mousa and Ahmad Mousa for allegedly being built without licensing. |
under the pretext of building without licensing
|
Israeli Army |
|
2- Apr-2004 |
Uprooting dozens of fruitful trees and deying access to10 Dunums of agriculture land belong to Palestinian farmers |
to terrorize Palestinian farmers from working on their lands
|
The settlers of Efrat |
|
25-Apr-2004 |
Demolishing a Palestinian house. Uprooting dozens of fruitful trees. |
to set foundations for parts-sections of the Segregation Wall |
Israeli Army |
|
29- Apr- 2004 |
Seizing 8 dunums of Palestinian agricultural lands out of 12 dunums owned by Emad 'Ali Salah and preventing the owner from accessing his land under the threat of weapons. |
to establish settlement’s outpost |
An Israeli settler called Hananiyia |
|
12- May-2004 |
Demolishing a commercial store |
under the pretext of building without licensing |
Israeli Army |
|
29- May- 2004 |
Uprooting 80 Grape trees owned by Emad Salah. |
to terrorize Palestinian farmers from working on their lands |
The settlers of Hananiyia outpost |
|
7-Aug-2004 |
Handing out resident Ghneim Muhammad Ghneim a military order to stop construction on his house. |
under the pretext of building without licensing |
Israeli Army |
|
12-Aug-2004 |
Burning 200 Grape trees and destroying 10 dunums cultivated with citrus trees. |
to terrorize Palestinian farmers from working on their lands |
Israeli settlers |
|
16-Aug-2004 |
Razing vast areas of Palestinian lands located near the bypass road # 60. |
to set foundations for parts-sections of the Segregation Wall |
Israeli Army |
|
20-Aug-2004 |
Seizing more than 400 dunums of Palestinian agricultural lands planted with Olives, Grapes and Almonds. |
to establish settlement’s outpost |
The settlers of Elazar |
|
5-Nov-2004 |
Closing of the main road with earth mounds which connects the old city of Al Khader with the new building area (the Gate area). |
To prevent or control confrontations with Al-Khader residents while setting the foundations for parts-sections of the Segregation Wall |
Israeli Army |
|
2- Dec-2004 |
Taking control of three-storey house and forcing all dwellers to evacuate the building under the threat of weapons. |
turning the house into a military point
|
Israeli Army |
|
10-Dec-2004 |
inform several farmers to demolish the green houses built on their land |
security purposes allegedly related to the security of Efrat settlement
|
Israeli Army |
|
30-Mar-2005 |
serving seven residents of Al-Khader village with military warnings to demolish their houses, and actually demolishing a barracks of Osama |
under the pretext of building without licensing |
Israeli Army |
|
7-Apr-2005 |
Confiscate 7.5 dunums of lands. |
To construct a 500 meters long and 15 meters wide part-section of the Segregation wall parallel to road # 60. |
Israeli Army |
|
18-Apr-2005 |
Uprooting more than 250 Olive and Vine trees |
to terrorize Palestinian farmers from working on their lands
|
The settlers of Neve Daniel |
|
16-May-2005 |
Preventing several Palestinian farmers from accessing more than 50 Dunums of their agricultural lands, planted with Almonds, Vine, and Vegetables. |
to set foundations for parts-sections of the Segregation Wall |
Israeli Army |
|
18-May-2005 |
Razing vast areas of Palestinian agricultural lands planted with Almonds and Vine trees. |
to set foundations for parts-sections of the Segregation Wall |
Israeli Army |
|
31-May-2005 |
Constructing 2 meters height and 20 meters width Iron Gate and installing Cement blocks in the area. |
to close off Al-Khader western gateway to Bethlehem city
|
Israeli Army |
|
27- Jun-2005 |
Seizing over one storey building. |
to turn it into a military point
|
Israeli Army |
|
27-July-2005 |
Demolishing three Palestinian houses and handing out warnings for houses demolishing to more than 20 other houses in the area. |
under the pretext of building without licensing |
Israeli Army |
|
3-Aug-2005 |
seizing nearly 10 Dunums of land |
moving 8 caravans to establish settlement’s outpost
|
The settlers of Efrat |
|
8-Sep-2005 |
Demolishing two Palestinian farm structures |
under the pretext of building without licensing |
Israeli Army |
|
17-Sep-2005 |
Burning more than 100 vine trees |
to terrorize Palestinian farmers from working on their lands |
The settlers of Efrat |
|
6-Oct-2005 |
Uprooting 150 Vine and Almond trees. |
to establish a security buffer zone |
Israeli Army |
|
19-Oct-2005 |
Demolishing more than 12 Palestinian structure |
under the pretext of building without licensing |
Israeli Army |
|
13-Nov-2005 |
Handing out Palestinian residents military order # (135/05) to confiscate 307,5 |
to set foundations for parts-sections of the Segregation Wall |
Israeli Army |
|
21-Nov-2005 |
Issuing military order # (210/05/T) to confiscate 85 dunums of lands |
To construct a tunnel that goes under bypass road # 60. |
Israeli Army |
|
31-Jan – 2006 |
Razing 10 dunms of land planted with Vine trees |
to establish a security buffer zone |
Israeli Army |
|
9- May-2006 |
Relocating Al Kahder checkpoint located near Bypass road # 60, 100 meters closer to the village. |
to work on tunnel location under bypass road 60
|
Israeli Army |
|
15-May-2006 |
Closing the northwestern entrance of the village with huge cement blocks. |
To restrict Palestinian access to bypass road 60 from one location until the time they forbid that access completely. |
Israeli Army |
|
21-May-2006 |
Razing Palestinian agricultural lands in the northwestern entrance of the village. |
to establish a security buffer zone |
Israeli Army |
|
29-May-2006 |
More agricultural lands destroyed landowners denied access thousands of dunums of lands. |
to establish a security buffer zone |
Israeli Army |
|
7-Jun-2006 |
Handing out Palestinian residents military warnings to demolish 30 different kind of structure |
under the pretext of building without licensing |
Israeli Army |
|
8-Jun-2006 |
Handing out residents warnings to demolish 2 houses (180 m2 area each) |
to establish a security buffer zone |
Israeli Army |
|
13-Jun-2006 |
Hindering the Palestinian Farmers from accessing some 20,000 dunums of agricultural lands |
areas isolated behind the Segregation Wall (Faghur, Dhaher Al Jorn and Umm Rukba areas) |
Israeli Army |
|
5-Sep-2006 |
Issuing military order # (69/06/T) to confiscate 152 dunums of agricultural lands. |
to construct a new tunnel and to resume the construction of parts of the Segregation Wall. |
Israeli Army |
|
12-Sep-2006 |
Issuing new military order # (77/06/T) to confiscate 102 dunums of lands |
for activities related to the Segregation Wall |
Israeli Army |
|
11-Oct-2006 |
Erecting an Iron Gate. |
to restrict Palestinian access to their land |
Israeli Army |
|
23-Nov-2006 |
Uprooting more than 300 Olive trees and attempting to seize some 2000 dunums of agricultural lands. |
In an attempt to terrorize the Palestinian farmers and increase the territorial lands of the settlement |
The settlers of Danniel |
|
4-Dec-2006 |
Razing 6 dunums of Palestinian agricultural lands and uprooting more than150 Vine tress and a number of Apple trees. |
to set foundation for the segregation wall
|
Israeli Army |
Source: ARIJ Monthly Reports 2000-2007
Al Khader Village: General Glance
Al-Khader village sets in an exceptional high quality and rich agriculture lands. It is highly cultivated with all sorts’ of fruitful trees and particularly well known for the vineyard trees. It is located some 4.5 km east of the 1949 Armistice Line (Green Line) and 3.5 Km west of Bethlehem city. Today, the village is a home to 9285 inhabitants according to the Palestinian Central bureau of statistics, 2006, and spreads over an area of 20,090 dunums. Accordingly, the agriculture sector is significant to the sustainability of the village residents, as it has been and still is a major source of income and plays an important role in its economy.
The village of Al Khader and the Israeli Segregation Wall
The Segregation Wall in Al-Khader village extends across 6.7 kilometers long; stretching from the north to the south and isolating behind it some 15000 dunums of the village lands area, about 75 % of its agricultural lands. See map 1
To conclude:-
The continuous Israeli violations against Palestinian residents all over the West Bank is an explicit violation of all humanitarian codes and civilized laws which uphold all Palestinians Rights. The violations, including the construction of the Segregation Wall are also blatant violation to peace agreements signed between the Israelis and Palestinians and a breach to Oslo Interim Agreement which states that: 'Neither side shall initiate or take any step that will change the status of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip pending the outcome of the permanent status negotiations'.(Article XXXI, clause 7).
Prepared by
The Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem
ARIJ
