Facing Expulsion

On Tuesday, 16 July 2019, at around noon, Civil Administration personnel arrived at the community of Khalet al-Furn, east of the village of Bani Na’im in east Hebron, with soldiers, Border Police officers and a bulldozer. The forces demolished a water cistern used for farming. The forces then proceeded south to Khirbet Ghuwein al-Fauqa, south of the town of a-Samu’ and demolished a shack used as a livestock pen.

Today, Thursday, 4 July 2019, at around 9:00 A.M., Civil Administration personnel arrived with soldiers, Border Police officers and four bulldozers at Khirbet a-Duqaiqah in the South Hebron Hills. The forces uprooted 500 forest trees planted in a nature reserve in 2014 for the benefit of local residents and destroyed four water cisterns used to irrigate them.

Yesterday, Wednesday, 3 July 2019, at around 8:00 A.M., Civil Administration personnel arrived with soldiers, Border Police officers, four bulldozers and an excavator at the nature reserve between the villages of Um al-Kheir and a-Najada (Humeida) in the South Hebron Hills. The forces uprooted some 300 acacia trees planted about 12 years ago and destroyed a fence that had been put up around the area.

At about 8:30 this morning, 17 June 2019, Civil Administration officials came with an escort of soldiers, Border Police and two bulldozers to Khirbet Khilet a-Dabe' in the South Hebron Hills. The force demolished a structure made out of cement blocks and a tin roof that was home to a family of 12, including 7 children. The force also demolished the family's power room and confiscated a solar panel. The homeowner, who tried to prevent the demolition, was knocked over by police. The troops then went on to Khirbet al-Halawah. At 11:00 A.M. they demolished another three cement block structures with corrugated metal roofs that were home to three families, leaving 21 people, including 11 children, homeless.

On 11 June 2019, at around 7:00 A.M., Civil Administration personnel arrived at farmland located south of Khirbet ‘Atuf in the northern Jordan Valley with a military escort and two bulldozers. The forces demolished two water cisterns that were dug six years ago with funding from a humanitarian organization. One of the cisterns was located in an area privately owned by a farmer from Tammun and the other in an area belonging to the Palestinian Ministry of Agriculture. The forces also uprooted more than 200 olive and other fruit trees planted by the farmer. The forces declared the area a closed military zone for five hours.

​ ​On 12 June 2019, at around 7:30 A.M., Civil Administration personnel arrived at Khirbet Um al-Kheir, in the South Hebron Hills, with a military and Border Police escort and two bulldozers. The forces demolished a caravan used as a home by a family of ten, including seven minors. From there, the forces proceeded east, to the community of Khashm a-Daraj, where they demolished a shack used as a livestock pen.

This morning, 12 June 2019, at around 7:00 A.M., Civil Administration personnel arrived at Khirbet a-Ras al-Ahmar in the northern Jordan Valley with a military escort and two bulldozers. The forces demolished six tents used as residences by two families with a total of 15 members, including 7 minors. The forces also demolished six tents used as livestock pens as well as a tin livestock pen. The forces then proceeded north, to an area that stretches between the Palestinian villages of al-'Aqabah and Tayasir, where they demolished a water cistern a farmer from Tayasir dug about three months ago for irrigation.

This week, again, on Sunday, Monday and Wednesday Civil Administration officials again came with a military jeep escort to Khirbet Humsah in the northern Jordan Valley and ordered the 15 families to vacate their homes pursuant to orders handed out in the community on 8 May 2019. This is the fourth week the families have been temporarily displaced, and the orders were carried out despite the heavy heat in the area, the Ramadan fast and the celebration of 'Eid al-Fitr as of Wednesday. Some of the families left on tractors harnessed to carts or in other vehicles, and others went on foot. On Wednesday morning, when 'Eid al-Fitr began, the forces came to the community at 5:00 A.M., two hours before the time stated in the order, and forced the families to leave unprepared. At 10:30, the military notified the families that they were permitted to return home (instead of at 2:00 P.M. as stated in the order).

On the morning of 30 May 2019, at about 8:00 A.M., Israeli Civil Administration personnel came with a tractor and bulldozer to Khirbet a-Ras al-Ahmar in the northern Jordan Valley. They had a military jeep as escort. The troops demolished two tents that served as seasonal dwellings and a sheep pen. One of the residential tents had been donated by the Red Cross and the other had been purchased with aid money from international humanitarian organizations. The troops also slashed and ruined ten canopy tents, some of which had been purchased with international aid funds. Later that morning, at about 10:00 A.M., CA personnel with a military jeep escort arrived at the village of al-Hadidiyah in the northern Jordan Valley. There, too, the troops demolished two tents that were seasonal homes and two tents that served as sheep pens.