- Violation: ravaging lands.
- Location: Deir Abu Hajla / East Jericho.
- Date: July 23rd 2020.
- Perpetrators: The Israeli Occupation Civil Administration.
- Victims: Bedouins of the area.
Description:
July 23rd 2020, The Israeli Occupation bulldozers carried on ravaging about 65 dunums of Deir Hajla lands East Jericho, leveling for a new colonial project.
Photos 1-3: Ravaging works in Deir Abu Hajla lands
Reportedly, the targeted land is located to the east of bypass “90” it is also close to a military camp, which makes it even harder for Palestinian bedouins to access.
Faraj An-Na’asan from the Liaison Office in Jericho told LRC:
“The Israeli Occupation authorities prohibit Bedouin Palestinians from using Abu Hajla lands under claims that they are governmental properties or closed military zones, and then the lands are leaked to settlers to start use them for their own ends.”
Legal Council Hani Al-Zbidat in Jericho and the Jordan Valley governorate told LRC:
“There is an Israeli plan to take over Waqf lands in Jericho and the Jordan Valley and give them to settlers and colonial institutions.”
According to the Palestinian Ministry of Endowment and Islamic Affairs (2020), Islamic Waqf owns about 261,000 dunums in Jericho and the Jordan Valley, the Israeli Occupation imposed their control over 222,000 dunums , most of them were transformed into closed military zones , buffer zones (near the Palestinian – Jordanian borders) , and the rest were used in colonial expansion projects.
The Palestinian Ministry of Endowment and Islamic Affairs actually controls 37,018 dunums , of which 7,675 dunums were leased to Palestinian farmers or agricultural societies , and 29,343 are unused currently.
