المكتب الوطني للدفاع عن الارض ومقاومة الاستيطان منظمة التحرير الفلسطينية
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By: Madeeha Al-A’raj
The National Bureau for defending land and resisting settlements ( nbprs ) stated in its latest weekly report , that the Israeli Civil Administration is preparing to conduct a survey for the number of the Palestinian people currently residing in Areas C, which Israel intends to annex and impose its laws on them according to the ‘American Deal of the Century’ in order to specify their number, and to prevent new Palestinians from reaching these areas to obtain Israeli citizenship. According to Israeli estimates, the annexation process will include more than 107,000 Palestinians in more than 43 villages and gatherings, whom will be given the choice to stay under Israeli control or moving to the Palestinian Authority areas in the West Bank, which clearly implies land confiscation, and ethnic cleansing, as well. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is giving much attention to the issue of annexation, fearing his political future, but under pressure from the internal opposition in Israel and international opposition to Israeli annexation plans, he could resort to a series of political maneuvers. Thus, he is meeting with heads of West Bank settlement councils, and with leaders of parties that participated in the government coalition to discuss the annexation scheme.
It seems that he is about to refrain from a wide annexation step from the West Bank under the international pressure, and due to the potential repercussions of the annexation in its current form at all security, economic and political levels, as the visit of German Foreign Minister, Haikou Maas to Israel was a live example on that, as well as the opposition of some of the settlers to Netanyahu’s plan claiming it delineates the borders, while imposing Israeli control and laws on all settlements in isolation from the annexation plan is accepted by the settlers, because imposing control and laws ensures that no final borders are defined, and implies the establishment of a Palestinian state.
As the date set for annexation is draw near, settlement plans and projects of the occupation authorities, and the flocks of settler gangs in various governorates of the West Bank continue under the occupation forces and police’ protection. The Municipality of Moshe Lyon is planning to implement a plan to Judaize large parts of the Jerusalem neighborhoods, such as Wadi Al-Joz, Sheikh Jarrah and Al-Masara by converting large areas there to a settlement investment center. The occupation municipality has begun implementing its plan by distributing orders to violate 200 commercial and industrial establishments in the industrial zone in Wadi Al-Joz to announce at a later time the start of the first phase of the plan, which seizes more than 2000 dunums. It is said that efforts are being made to secure settlers periodic incursions into these areas in the coming days, and that extreme settlers are working as volunteers within the excavations in the vicinity of the Al-Buraq Wall in preparation for opening a tunnel under excavation.
In the Nablus Governorate, the village of Asira al-Qibliya, south of Nablus, was attacked by settlers protected by the occupation forces in the eastern area, confrontations took place there, which ended with the withdrawal of settlers from the village towards the settlement of “Yitzhar”, while settlers from the “Rahalim” settlement damaged tires of 8 vehicles In the village of Al-Sawiya, south of Nablus, they also wrote racist slogans bearing the signature of “pay the price group” on the walls of several houses, calling for revenge against the Palestinians and slogans glorifying the Jewish people. They also burned a vehicle in the town of Zita, south of Nablus, and wrote racist slogans.
The occupation continues to build settlement roads in the northern West Bank, where they started removing and destroying hundreds of olive trees from the area between the junction of the settlement “Yitzhar” and the “Luna Park” park in the Hawara Plain in order to establish a special bypass road to serve the settlers south of Nablus, which runs from the “Yitzhar” settlement to the Za’tara checkpoint, leading to Al-Sawiya village, south of Nablus, reaches a 7-km-length, and confiscates 406 dunums. The bulldozers of the occupation also started to open a road in a mountainous area from the land of Furosh Beit Dajan, to the west of the settlement of “Al-Hamra”, which was built on Palestinian lands in the central Jordan Valleys, northeast of the West Bank.
In the Salfeet Governorate, settlers from the “Brokhin” settlement built on the lands of Kafr al-Dik and Bruqin have cut down a number of olive trees in the northeastern region of the towns adjacent to the “Brokhin” settlement, and an area of 19 dunums planted with olive trees, while the occupation authorities notified the seizure of 160 dunums of Qalqilya Governorate’s lands. Moreover, dozens of citizens were handed over decisions to seize some of their lands in the villages of Habla in the south, and Nabi Elias to the east for the purpose of settlement expansion, knowing that some of these lands lie behind the Apartheid Wall.
List of Israeli Occupation and Settlers’ Assaults over the Last Week,
Documented by the National Bureau:
Jerusalem:
- Female child, Mariam Yasser Najib, a resident of the Old City of the occupied Jerusalem suffered of wounds sustained in her eye after an extremist settler pushed her to the ground.
- Forcing Imad Mashahreh to self-demolish his house in the Al-Sala’a Neighborhood of Jabal Al-Mukaber, and demolish barracks and vendors’ stands in the vicinity of the Qalandia checkpoint and the entrance to the Al-Ram town.
- Demolishing a house in Swaih, Ras al-Amud Neighborhood built since for 6 years, belonging to Aisha Hijazi.
Hebron:
- Demolishing a retaining wall in the Beit Einoun area, northeast of Hebron, destroyed crops in the Musafir Yatta area, and barracks and tents in the village of Birin, south of Hebron Governorate, and seized them, as well as notifying the Palestinian citizens of demolishing residential rooms, homes, and barns for their livestock.
- Attacking a number of citizens’ homes and vehicles in the Susiya village, east of Yatta, south of Hebron, and in the area between “Kiryat Arba” and “Givat Havot” settlement in Hebron, smashed windows of 6 vehicles.
Bethlehem:
- Notice to stop work on excavations for the Kaisan Elementary School, east of Bethlehem, for the second time and seized a bulldozer there. The Israeli occupation authorities notified a number of houses owners and retaining walls as well of demolishing in the Al-Walajah village.
- Handing over notices to stop construction in retaining walls and floors in front of citizens’ homes and a water well, and some others received notifications to stop construction.
Salfeet:
- Handing over 6 demolition notices for a 4-donum park, agricultural roads, stone chains, a five-a-side children’s playground, and a store of equipment on an area of approximately 100 dunums in the Haris Village.
- Notification to demolish 4 barracks and an agricultural room in the Wadi Khalil and Bir Abu Amar areas in Qarawat Bani Hassan, west of Salfit.
Jordan Valley:
- Destroying 200-meter water lines in the Qawoun plain in the northern Jordan Valley, due to the military training over the last week.
