Violation: Vandalizing an agricultural room and uprooting olive saplings.
Location: Turmus’ayya Town, Ramallah Governorate.
Date of Violation: September 9, 2024.
Perpetrator: Settlers.
Affected Party: Farmer Mohammad Ziyad Taleb Hazma.

Details of the Violation:

Settlers have escalated their attacks on agricultural lands in various areas of the Palestinian countryside. On the morning of Monday, September 9, 2024, a group of settlers, suspected to have come from the illegal outpost established a few months ago in the "Al-Zahrat" area north of Turmus Ayya, raided the area. They targeted an agricultural building owned by farmer Mohammad Ziyad Taleb Hazma, who is the sole provider for his family of eight, including three females and three children.

The agricultural building consists of a room made of bricks with a zinc roof, in addition to a concrete yard surrounded by zinc walls. In the surrounding area, there are at least 45 olive saplings, each four years old, which were uprooted during the attack.

The settlers broke and removed the gate of the building, stole all of its contents, including hand tools used for farming, and damaged some of them. In addition to this, they destroyed 45 olive saplings planted around the area by uprooting them manually. This attack further exacerbates the challenges faced by the farmer, Mohammad Ziyad Taleb Hazma, in continuing his agricultural activities and sustaining his livelihood.

The affected farmer, Mohammad Ziyad Taleb Hazma, shared the following with the LRC researcher:

"The agricultural building is located north of Turmus ‘ayya, on the road linking Turmus’ayya to the village of Al-Mughayer. About a year ago, settlers established a new pastoral outpost nearby, which has played a significant role in spreading destruction in the area. The settlers aim to change the character of the region as a whole, and this attack was intended to force us to leave the area and allow settlers to take control of it."

Since the events of October 7 (the Gaza War), settlers have closed all roads leading to the Turmus’ayya plain and also blocked the road connecting Turmus’ayya to Al-Mughayer. Settlers have taken advantage of this situation to destroy agricultural lands and damage essential agricultural infrastructure across an area of 3,000 dunams.

About Turmus’ayya Town:

Turmus’ayya is located to the northeast of Ramallah, approximately 25 kilometers away from the city. As of 2017, the town has a population of about 2,464 residents. The population is primarily composed of two main families: Al-Awad and Al-Jabara, along with smaller families of refugee origin, including Shalabi, Kouk, and Hazmawi.

Land Area of Turmus’ayya Town:

The total area of Turmus’ayya is 18,139 dunams, of which 1,350 dunams are designated for the town's built-up area. The land is classified into Areas B and C, with Area B covering 11,218 dunams and Area C spanning 6,921 dunams.

• The Israeli settlements have confiscated 1,023 dunams of land from the village for the benefit of the following two settlements:

• Shilo Settlement: Established in 1978, it has confiscated 706 dunams from Palestinian land and is home to 1,810 settlers.
• Mitzpe Rachel Settlement: Established in 1992, it has confiscated 317 dunams.

• The occupation has constructed part of Bypass Road No. 60 on its land, seizing 12.5 dunams

Agricultural Structures in the Circle of Israeli Targeting:

It is worth mentioning that the LRC has documented more than 365 settler attacks on agricultural structures in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since the beginning of 2024 up to the time of preparing this report. Among these attacks, settlers targeted more than 62 agricultural rooms, which were either burned, damaged, or had their contents destroyed or stolen.

The targeting of agricultural rooms built by Palestinian farmers on their land—intended to store agricultural tools used for land cultivation—also serves as a place for farmers to rest after working on their fields (such as plowing, irrigating, weeding, or spraying pesticides). These attacks by settlers aim to intimidate Palestinian farmers, instilling fear that their presence on the land puts their lives in danger, thus preventing them from safely accessing their land.

مشروع: حماية الحقوق البيئية الفلسطينية في مناطق "ج" SPERAC IV - FCDO

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this report are those of Land Research Center and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of the project donor; the Norwegian Refugee Council.

إخلاء المسؤولية: الآراء ووجهات النظر الواردة في هذا التقرير هي آراء ووجهات نظر مركز أبحاث الأراضي ولا تعكس بالضرورة وجهات نظر أو مواقف الجهة المانحة للمشروع؛ المجلس النرويجي. للاجئين

Impact of the Attack on the Agricultural Room and Property