Violation: setting fire to generators
Date: 10/12/2014
Location Beta town/ Nablus
Perpetrators: Itamar colonists
Victims: 25 beneficiaries families
Details:
A group of Itamar colonists sneaked to on December 10,2014 the eastern side of Beta town, south of Nablus governorate and set fire to power generators at al-Bahha factory for fodder through hurling a flammable canister at them. Also, colonists torched a fuel tank that contained at least 3000INS worth of diesel.
It should be marked that fire reached out two generators with a cost of 100,000INS for each that area used for electricity generating since the area in which the factory is established lacks a power network. The fact that the factory is founded on the edge of the town, which is considered area B( goes under the occupation security control) according to Oslo Accord is what makes power accessibility impossible. Fire then spread over to reach a fuel tank but the crew of Civil Defense helped extinguishing the fire at last.
Eye witness Mu'taz Hamayil told the Land Research Center researcher that: " he noticed an active movement for colonists in the nearby and that troops from the occupation army were standing at a 120m distance. This is to say that they had mutual coordination and the whole attack was planed beforehand".
Photos 1+2: a general overview of the unusable factory due to the torche
A repeated attack :
The mayor of Beta Othman Dwaikat told the Land Research Center researcher that: "it's not the first time the factory witnesses such an attack by the same extreme group of colonists for on July 2014, same colonists tried to set fire to the factory periphery but workers managed control it".
He also added that: " troops from the occupation army are always present at the area near the factory. Noteworthy, the factory is only 4km away from Beta and is 5km away from Itamar colony".
From workers to jobless:
More than 25 workers lost their jobs after the factory shut down following the torch incident. As a result, 25 families became without any source of income.
It should be marked that the facility is of 16 dunums in area and is composed of one floor, in which chicken and sheep fodder is produced.
Itamar colonists' attacks on the area have escalated during the past couple of years. For example, colonists released their cows to graze on Aqraba village lands that are considered as area B according to Oslo Accords. (Click here)
Not only that, colonist cut down and loot olive trees each harvesting season; despite all complaints submitted by residents to the occupation police, no active change is seen on the ground.
Photos 3-4: Itamar colony
Prepared by
The Land Research Center
LRC
