News / Palestine

Israeli settlers violently continue Palestinian land grab in West Bank

Monday, 19 July 2021 5:56 PM [ Last Update: Monday, 19 July 2021 5:56 PM ]

Palestinian protesters hurl rocks at Israeli forces during confrontaions with them in the town of Beita, near the occupied West Bank city of Nablus, opposite the newly-established Israeli wildcat settler outpost of Eviatar, on July 16 2021. (Photo by AFP)

Israeli settlers, with the protection of the regime’s soldiers, have stormed an area to take control of pieces of land for the construction of a settlement road in the occupied West Bank.

The bypass road will lead to the Dotan settlement.

Settlers bulldozed an area in the Abu al-Shawareb Mountain near Kafr Ra’i village, southwest of Jenin, the Palestine Information Center reported on Monday. They set up fences, claiming the land had no owners.

Locals with ownership documents were shocked by the seizure of the area, which spreads over several thousand square meters.

In another violation incident, a group of settlers stormed the Mount Al-Alam area, north of Ni’lin. Farmers in the area were forced to leave, trees were uprooted and irrigation lines were damaged.

A spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres recently called on Israel to halt demolition of Palestinian homes and confiscation of their land across the occupied territories.

Throughout the years, Israel has frequently demolished Palestinian homes, claiming that the structures have been built without permits, which are nearly impossible to obtain.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says Israeli authorities either demolish or seize Palestinian property in the West Bank and East Jerusalem al-Quds, a trend which has led to the displacement of a large number of Palestinians in recent months.

According to the OCHA, Israel has demolished more than 420 Palestinian-owned structures in the West Bank so far this year.

At the same time, Israel has expanded its settlements, which the UN Security Council has condemned in several resolutions.

In West Bank, Israel demolishes more Palestinian residential units

The demolition took place near the village of al-Mughayyir, northeast of Ramallah.

Palestinian media reports also said a large number of settlers on Sunday evening raided Palestinian streets across the West Bank, assaulting citizens.

The settlers from the Ramat Yishai and Beit Hadassah settlements, built in the center of al-Khalil (Hebron), attacked residents with stones.

The settlers also stormed the Tira neighborhood in Ramallah from the direction of Ein Qinya town under the Israeli military protection. The troops forced the Palestinians to close their businesses in order to provide security for a Jewish religious ritual in the area.

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