Israeli settlers’ bulldozers continued on Monday to level lands in Ain al-Bayda area south of al-Khalil in implementation of the policy of displacement and ethnic cleansing that the Israeli occupation government is pursuing against Masafer Yatta’s residents in favor of settlement expansion.
Ratib al-Jabour the coordinator of the Popular and National Committees to Resist the Wall and Settlements confirmed that the Ain al-Bayda area has been subjected to widespread bulldozing operations by settlers under the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) protection for more than two weeks.
Jabour pointed out that the IOF allowed a settler to rent an estimated 4000 dunums in the area claiming that it is “state land”.
He added that the citizens had proven their ownership of the land and submitted ownership documents to the Israeli courts yet the settlers’ bulldozing went ahead unabated.
The coordinator underlined that the citizens organized three activities on Friday to prevent settlers from continuing the bulldozing. Furthermore the landowners pitched new tents instead of those which were destroyed and confiscated by the IOF he added.
Jabour warned of settlement expansion plans in the Masafer area. “IOF wants to displace residents of more than 15 hamlets and seize 50000 dunums under the pretext that it is a firing zone” he underlined.
