JENIN, (PIC)
Israeli occupation forces (IOF) notified the seizure of about 120 dunums of lands in Jalboun town, north of Jenin, in the northern West Bank.
Local sources said a force of the occupation army stormed the town and notified the seizure of about 120 dunums of its lands located in the southern area, adding that these lands are owned by the town’s residents and have been planted with olive trees for more than 50 years.
Jalboun is surrounded by three settlements: Ma’ale Gilboa, Merav and King Joshua, all of which were established after 1976. The apartheid separation wall was built on its lands in 2004, after seizing about 1,500 dunums of citizens’ lands to build the wall, which deprived the majority of the village’s residents of their lands.
The IOF prevents the villagers from establishing any urban activity within the 3,000 dunums near the wall. A number of houses in the village were demolished and others were notified to stop construction in that area.
The IOF also prevents farmers from accessing their lands behind the wall, preventing people from entering, cultivating and reclaiming their lands, which amount to more than 350 dunums planted with olive trees.
A few days ago, the IOF notified the seizure of 70 dunums of the lands of Al-Yamoun town, west of Jenin, out of an area of more than 800 dunums.
Since the beginning of Israel’s genocidal war on the Gaza Strip, land seizures and confiscations in the West Bank increased dramatically. According to estimates by the Palestinian Wall and Settlement Commission, the occupation authorities confiscated 27,000 dunums of West Bank lands in 2024, in the largest theft of Palestinian lands in three decades.
