Violation: cutting down trees.

Location: Burin village / Nablus governorate .

Date: October 6 , 2019.

Perpetrator: Settlers of “Yitzhar”.

Victims: Farmers Ahmad Najjar and Nassir Qaddous.

Description:

Sunday , October 6, 2019, settlers of Yitzhar cut down 36 olive trees in Burin south Nablus.

Burin village council head Nidal Najjar told LRC reporter:

“Monday , October 7, 2019 , farmers were shocked when seeing tens of trees cut down in “Bab Khallet Al-Ghoul” location in the southern area , behind the bypass road that leads to “Yitzhar” colony. Fanatic settlers cut down 36 fruitful olive trees in two plots, only few days before olive harvesting season.”

The targeted trees belong to :

• Nassir Qaddous : lost 7 olive trees , aging 60 years old.
• Ahmad Najjar : lost 29 olive trees , aging 6 years old.

Ahmad Najjar (63 years old ) – supports a family of 14 , told LRC reporter:

“Monday morning , I found my trees cut by fanatic settlers , it was a heartrending scene  , my 29 olive trees were completely destroyed and leveled to the ground , I lost about 60 kg of olives harvest.”

Nassir Qaddous (52 years)- supports a family of 7 – told LRC reporter:

“I was told by one of the neighbor herders that my trees were cut down, I rapidly went to my plot in Khallet Al-Ghoul location and found  aging olive trees leveled to the ground, I lost about 350 kg of olives harvest in a terrorist attack by settlers. Settlers intentionally carry out attacks against olive groves before olive harvesting seasons, because they realize how olives make an essential part of the Palestinian culture.”

About Burin:[1]

10 km to the south of Nablus city, Burin is surrounded by Nablus city (north), Madama and Iraq Burin (west), Kafr Qalil and Orata (east), Huwwara (south).

Burin has a population of 2844 people in 2017 census.

It has an area of 10,416 dunums, of which 335 dunums are the village’s built-up area.

The occupation confiscated about 2177 dunums of Burin’s lands:

• Israeli settlements devoured 1099 dunums for the construction of the following settlements:

• Bypass 60 and 555 devoured (387) dunums.
• Israeli military camps devoured (691) dunums.

The town as divided by Oslo conventions:

• B area : (2,408) dunums.
• C area (9,941) dunums

(Yiizhar) settlement:[2]

Yitzhar  is translated to “olive oil”, the name of the town is related to olive oil milling.

Yitzhar was at first a military point “Nahal” established in 1/8/1983, then converted into a colony in 23/7/1984, it is about 8 km south west Nablus, on the main road that links Ramallah to Nablus.

It is built on Palestinian ground (the villages of Burin, Huwwara, ‘Einabus, ‘Urif, ‘Asira al Qibliya, and Madama), like any other Israeli colony, and carried on expanding on tens of agricultural dunums.

The illegal colony was built with plan 86/1, and confiscated lands belong to Palestinian citizens , and located in natural block 8 from Burin lands, block 4 from Madma lands, block 1 from Asira Al-Qibliya and block 3 from Urif lands.

[1] GIS-LRC

[2] GIS-LRC

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