Masafer Yatta area... Palestinian villages threatened by the nightmare of forced displacement for decades

A group of 12 Palestinian villages, located in the city of "Yatta" in the south of the West Bank.

Its residents have been at risk of permanent forced displacement for decades due to the establishment by the occupying power of 10 settlements, outposts and “firing zones (918)” for military training.

Palestinians in the area have sustained damages that constantly threaten their security of life, due to the encroachment of settlements in violation of international humanitarian law (Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention), which prohibits the transfer of the civilian population of the Israeli authority to the occupied territories.

Palestinians in these villages are subjected to beatings with sticks and stones thrown by settlers, terrifying and dispersing their livestock by riding horses or mountain vehicles to frighten the herds, and releasing dogs that attack the shepherds and their sheep.

They are subjected to setting fire to their fields and cutting down their trees.

It is prohibited to reach the areas of “shooting” at the residents of the residential communities displaced from the area, at a time when military exercises are not taking place, with the exception of cultivating land and grazing livestock on weekends or during Jewish holidays for only one month annually.

Location:

The Masafer Yatta area is located in the city of Yatta between 14 and 24 kilometers southeast of Hebron Governorate. It is the second largest city in terms of population and area, within an area of ​​35,000 square kilometers.

The communities threatened with forced displacement are located southeast of "Al-Mosafer" on an area of ​​32,000 square kilometers.

During the eighties of the last century, the occupation army classified 30 square kilometers of the area of ​​"Masafer Yatta" with "Khirbet Umm Fujara" as "firing areas" for military training purposes, along with 13 other residential communities, housing 3,000 people.

The occupation authorities designated military zones called the “firing zone” (918) for most of the population lands in the area, along with 14 Palestinian communities out of 38 communities in 1999, for military training purposes.

Population:

There are at least 3,000 Palestinians in the Masafer Yatta area in the hills south of Hebron, according to local and international statistics, some of which were prepared by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OCHA-OPT).

Palestinians in the area live in difficult living conditions, and usually live in underground caves, because they do not obtain legal building permits, so they cannot maintain or expand their homes.

From the early 2000s they started building tin huts and small rooms above the ground.

However, most of them turned into rubble after the occupation forces intervened with bulldozers to remove them.

The number of residents threatened with forced displacement following the Israeli court’s decision is 1,200 Palestinians, including 500 children, after a decades-long legal battle that ended in May 2022 in the Israeli Supreme Court.

The 38 residential communities in the Masafer Yatta area are among the weakest in the West Bank, as they have limited health, education, water, sewage and electricity infrastructure.

Date:

Since the seventies of the last century, Israel has classified large areas of Masafer Yatta lands as settlements, and the project has expanded to the north, east and southeast of the area, limiting the Palestinians’ freedom of movement and the space available to them to graze their livestock, which is their main source of income.

This caused the shepherds to depend on fodder and had to buy it on credit.

The Palestinians in Masafer Yatta were at risk of forced displacement in 1999, after the occupation army expelled 14 residential communities from the area, and destroyed and confiscated most of the residents’ homes on the pretext that these areas belong to the “firing zone” and that their residents did not meet the conditions of “permanent residence” despite The families had documents proving their ownership of the land, dating back to before 1967.

In late 1999, the occupation forcibly displaced about 700 Palestinian citizens from 12 villages and villages, but the residents returned after 4 months again according to a petition submitted to the Israeli court. Final decision on the case.

Despite this, the Israeli Ministry of Defense stated in 2012 that 8 residential communities should be evacuated, and allowed them limited access to the lands for cultivation, noting that the Israeli Civil Administration tried to move them to other places, but the residents refused to do so.

Palestinians suffer from continuous violence. In 2006, settlers killed 100 sheep of Mahmoud Hammadeh, a resident of the area, and on September 28, 2021, 9 Palestinians were injured after Israelis attacked residential communities from the two outposts of Avigaiel and the Ma’on settlement farm, and Mahmoud’s 3-year-old grandson was injured. years with a stone in his head while he was in his bed.

In 2021, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs documented about 500 attacks by settlers in the area, killing 4 Palestinians, injuring 175 others, and causing extensive damage to their property.

The UN office stated that these attacks have increased by 40% and 50% compared to the years 2019 and 2020, respectively, and the 2021 attacks are the highest recorded by the office since the beginning of its documentation of settler violence in 2005.

According to the Israeli human rights organization Yesh Din, the occupation police investigated only 38 out of 60 incidents, and no indictments were filed.

A settler was sentenced to 20 months in prison in November 2021 for throwing a stun grenade at a Palestinian house, injuring two Palestinians and causing severe damage to the house.

And between 2011 and 2021, Israeli forces demolished or exported 20 buildings in the area, most notably the 2011 incident when 8 Palestinians were displaced along with 30 children, in which the area’s mosque was demolished and water pumps and an electricity generator for residents were destroyed.

There are humanitarian efforts to provide assistance to the people of the communities in "Masafer Yatta" to provide their basic needs and stand against their forced deportation.

However, the occupation authorities issue demolition orders or stop work on many of the materials provided, confiscating vehicles and equipment, and obstructing the access of humanitarian workers.

The UN OCHA office said that demolition orders have been issued for the year 2022, pending implementation, targeting the four schools and medical centers in the area built with the support of the international community.

The Israeli Civil Administration rejected a plan to build the infrastructure for Area C, Khirbet Umm Fujara, of Masafer Yatta.

An appeal has been filed against the dissolution of the scheme, and the residents are still awaiting a decision on it before the Israeli High Court of Justice.

On May 4, 2022, the Israeli court rejected appeals against eviction orders issued against Palestinian residents of Masafer Yatta, which is classified as a closed military training site. of the population and used for military training.

According to data from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the occupation authorities have demolished or confiscated 217 Palestinian buildings in those areas since 2011, displacing 608 Palestinians.

Economy:

The residents of the Masafer Yatta area suffer from a deteriorating living situation, as their residential communities are not connected to the Israeli electricity network, and therefore their residents depend on solar panel systems provided by international donors to secure electricity.

However, in 2013, the occupation authority issued - according to OCHA - demolition orders for 6 solar panels, 30 water wells, and air-powered engines owned by the communities.

This has forced many families in the region to buy water tanks from the private sector at prices 5 times more than the price of piped water.

The Israeli planning system prohibits Palestinians from obtaining building permits in Khirbet Umm Fujara, which is located in Area C, 30% of which are classified as “firing zones” inside Masafer Yatta, which impedes the establishment of housing, infrastructure and decent living standards.

The Palestinians in Area C are considered vulnerable to food insecurity, as they depend on raising livestock as a main source of income, and they cannot feed their livestock due to the difficulty of their access to grazing areas and the threats of settlers and the occupation army.

As a result, the income of the population in the region decreased, the poverty rate increased among them, and they became dependent on food aid from humanitarian organizations.