Preface:
More attacks againt the village of Nahhalin were carried out in recent months; the village urban expansion and development chances are extremely limited due to the Israeli restrictions considering that 94 % of the total village area is classified ‘C’ according to Oslo.
In addition, the village is surrounded by nine Israeli colonies which are expanding over the village lands. Those colonies have been the starting point of several attacks at the village. The worst of those attacks are uprooting trees, destroying crops, and the pump of the colonies sewage towards the agricultural lands in the village which had a devastating effect on that particular sector and the wellbeing of the people. Since the beginning of 2013, several military confiscation orders have been issued for lands in the village; these included:
- On April 2, 2013, the Israeli Occupation Army handed Ali Fannoun order number (2173) which calls for the confiscation of a 2.6-dunum plot. They also handed a similar order (2174) to Ahmad Shakarna.
A stop-work order (151701) was handed to Mousa Shakarna for his 2-storey residence.
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Order 2173
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Order 2174
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- On March 24, 2013, the Israeli Occupation Civil Administration issued an order, signed by Natalia Averboch, Deputy of the Head of the Colonization Committee and advertised it in Al Quds daily. The order included a modification of the boundaries of Bitar Elit colony which were approved in the master plan numbered 426/1/3/13.
The new master plan includes turning 29.5 dunums of lands classified as "natural areas" into residential areas in addition to adding 70 residential units to the colony. The lands are owned by villagers of Nahhalin who were given a period of 60 days to object to the orders.
Targeted lands
- On March 5, 2013, a group of colonists of Gibout colony attacked lands in Al Jamjoum area in Nahhalin before ravaging 90 trees (80 olives and 10 forest trees); 10 trees were uprooted.
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- On February 24, 2013, a group of colonists pumped sewage water towards 100-dunum plot before unloading a 10-truck load of manure in the same plot which is planted with olives and citrus.
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On February 12, 2013 the so-called Civil Administration of Jehovah and Samaria – the Israeli Occupation Army issued an eviction order for 42 dunums of agricultural lamds in Nahhalin village under the pretext of "State properties". The orders demanded returning to the status quo within 45 days of the order date.
Nahhalin:
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.
