Land Research Center

Violation: Settlers attacks on agricultural lands.

Location: Al-Ma’arjat area, east of Al-Taybeh town / Ramallah and Al-Bireh governorate.

Violation date: 23/06/2022.

The aggressor: the existing settlement outpost in the region.

Affected party: a number of Palestinian farmers.

Violation details:

On the morning of Thursday, June 23, 2022, the settlers launched a herd of cows randomly towards pastures and agricultural lands in Al-Ma’arjat, which resulted in damage to 120 dunums, knowing that this attack was guarded and supported by the Israeli occupation army.

It should be added that the settlers, starting from the random settlement outpost perched on the lands of the Al-Ma’arjat area, east of the village of Al-Taybeh, continue to sabotage and harass farmers.

The affected farmer, Sheikh Eid Al-Kaabneh, told the field researcher of the Land Research Center the following:

“From the first time the settlers set up the random outpost, we started suffering from the continuous attacks of the them, and the settlement outpost is of a pastoral nature, and the settlers there depend on raising cows, and they graze their cows on a daily basis in the areas designated for us as pastures to the extent that their cows graze at a distance of no more than a few meters from our tents”.

It is noteworthy that the Al-Ma’arjat area is one of the areas in which more than 45 Bedouin families live, who depend on raising sheep, and the pastures are exploited there. It was observed that the settlers provoked livestock breeders and attempted to attack and expel them most of the time, and even the lands that are cultivated with field crops and olive trees east of the town, were also not spared and damaged by the grazing of the cows there.

Eid also added:

“The settlers tried more than once to attack us, and they stole a number of sheep and transported them to the settlement outpost. They with the occupation army attacked our sons. A number of Bedouin youths were arrested in Al-Ma’arjat. We are always harassed by the settlers, and the occupation police and army always support them”.

Mr. Issa Hanna, a farmer from the town of Taybeh, told the field researcher of the Land Research Center:

“I own an olive farm on an area of seven dunums, and the age of the trees ranges between 20-28 years. I was surprised more than once by the presence of a herd of cows grazing among them, which caused me direct damage to 29 olive trees in April 2021, I filed complains to several governmental offices including the Israeli ones, but to no avail so far, and these trees have become somewhat damaged, knowing that I rely on them to produce olive oil every year”.

It is noteworthy that the settlers’ pastoral outpost is considered one of several pastoral outposts that are spreading in the Palestinian Jordan Valley and Shafaghouria areas, where the settlers depend on raising livestock, and they use this mechanism to tighten the screws on farmers, destroy their agricultural lands and even close their pastures, which has caused a large number of problems, such as the the difficult conditions experienced by the residents of the area, and a large number of random outposts were monitored and the daily aggression caused by the settlers to the agricultural sector and the confiscation of the surrounding land.

Violation: Settlers attacks on agricultural lands.

Location: Al-Ma’arjat area, east of Al-Taybeh town / Ramallah and Al-Bireh governorate.

Violation date: 23/06/2022.

The aggressor: the existing settlement outpost in the region.

Affected party: a number of Palestinian farmers.

Violation details:

On the morning of Thursday, June 23, 2022, the settlers launched a herd of cows randomly towards pastures and agricultural lands in Al-Ma’arjat, which resulted in damage to 120 dunums, knowing that this attack was guarded and supported by the Israeli occupation army.

It should be added that the settlers, starting from the random settlement outpost perched on the lands of the Al-Ma’arjat area, east of the village of Al-Taybeh, continue to sabotage and harass farmers.

The affected farmer, Sheikh Eid Al-Kaabneh, told the field researcher of the Land Research Center the following:

“From the first time the settlers set up the random outpost, we started suffering from the continuous attacks of the them, and the settlement outpost is of a pastoral nature, and the settlers there depend on raising cows, and they graze their cows on a daily basis in the areas designated for us as pastures to the extent that their cows graze at a distance of no more than a few meters from our tents”.

It is noteworthy that the Al-Ma’arjat area is one of the areas in which more than 45 Bedouin families live, who depend on raising sheep, and the pastures are exploited there. It was observed that the settlers provoked livestock breeders and attempted to attack and expel them most of the time, and even the lands that are cultivated with field crops and olive trees east of the town, were also not spared and damaged by the grazing of the cows there.

Eid also added:

“The settlers tried more than once to attack us, and they stole a number of sheep and transported them to the settlement outpost. They with the occupation army attacked our sons. A number of Bedouin youths were arrested in Al-Ma’arjat. We are always harassed by the settlers, and the occupation police and army always support them”.

Mr. Issa Hanna, a farmer from the town of Taybeh, told the field researcher of the Land Research Center:

“I own an olive farm on an area of seven dunums, and the age of the trees ranges between 20-28 years. I was surprised more than once by the presence of a herd of cows grazing among them, which caused me direct damage to 29 olive trees in April 2021, I filed complains to several governmental offices including the Israeli ones, but to no avail so far, and these trees have become somewhat damaged, knowing that I rely on them to produce olive oil every year”.

It is noteworthy that the settlers’ pastoral outpost is considered one of several pastoral outposts that are spreading in the Palestinian Jordan Valley and Shafaghouria areas, where the settlers depend on raising livestock, and they use this mechanism to tighten the screws on farmers, destroy their agricultural lands and even close their pastures, which has caused a large number of problems, such as the the difficult conditions experienced by the residents of the area, and a large number of random outposts were monitored and the daily aggression caused by the settlers to the agricultural sector and the confiscation of the surrounding land.