Violation: Uprooting 50 trees/ saplings and damaging an agricultural land.

Location: Kafr ad-Dik town/ west Salfit.

Date: July, 1^st 2025.

Perpetrators: Settlers.

Affected party: The farmer Jehad Abdallah Ismail Al Deek.

Details:

Kafr ad-Dik located west Salfit attacked by settlers with aim of preventing farmers from accessing their lands.

It’s worth noting that settlers believed came from ‘’Broukheen’’ settlement, on Tuesday, July, 1^st 2025, targeted ‘’Khaneeq Khalaf’’ area located within natural block no.2 and plot no.5 from Kafr Al Deek lands, specifically in northern town and 400 away from Bourkheen settlement.

It’s noted that settlers targeted the land belongs to farmer Jehad Ismail Al Dik, who supports a family consisting of 5 members, including 2 women and 3 children, as the land with total area of 2 dunams. settlers by using sharp tools to cutting and vandalizing trees and agricultural equipment, causing severe damages as follows:

• Cutting 30 olive trees, causing partially damaging.
• Cutting and vandalizing 10 grape saplings and 10 almond saplings.
• Vandalizing water tank with a capacity of 1m³.
• Cutting and vandalizing 5 Beehives were existed in the land.

It’s noted that this attack is repeated several times on the land’s of farmer Jehad Al Dik stated as follows:

"A few years ago, in 2018, I was attacked by settlers and they deliberately vandalized several saplings and agricultural room in my land, in 2022, they vandalized the fence around my land. After Gaza war, settlers have increased their attacks on us and tried to close off agricultural roads, although we prevented them from approaching. Today, they continue their acts of damage works such as:   cutting trees, vandalism almond saplings and water tank, so I am determined to remain on my land.’’

It's noted that Kafr Al Deek town suffers from settlers’ attack, over the past years, dozens of residential and agricultural structures, as vast areas were closed off, specifically, in Banat Bir and Dahr Sabah areas.

About Kafr ad-Dik Town:

Kafr ad-Dik is located 15 kilometers west of Salfit city. It is bordered to the north by Biddya, to the west by the villages of Rafat and Deir Ballut, to the east by Burqin and Sarta, and to the south by the Bani Zeid villages. As of 2017, the population of Kafr ad-Dik was 5,551.

The town covers a total area of 15,529 dunams, of which 791 dunams are the built-up area.

The Israeli occupation has confiscated 2,477 dunams of Kafr ad-Dik’s lands as follows:

Settlements: 1,225 dunams were seized for the establishment of settlements, including:

Bypass roads have looted 362 dunums.

The racist wall has looted 890 dunums under its path, and will isolate about 8842 dunums behind it, and its length on the village lands is 8905 meters.

The lands of Kafr ad-Dik are classified according to the Oslo Accords as B, which constitutes 15% of the village area, while C areas, i.e. under complete control of the Israeli occupation, constitute 85%.

- Areas classified as "B" 2252 dunums.

- Areas classified as "C" 13277 dunums.

Legal Commentary:

The Palestinian environment, in general, is subjected to numerous environmental violations by the Israeli occupation, disregarding all international and national laws and conventions related to the protection of environmental rights. The right to live in a clean and healthy environment is a fundamental human right that has been inherent to mankind since the beginning of creation. The occupation often attempts to present itself as being concerned with international environmental issues, despite having signed major environmental protection agreements, such as the Basel Convention in 1989, the Rotterdam Convention in 2008, the Stockholm Convention in 2001, and the Ramsar Convention in 1971, as well as air quality and climate protocols. Nevertheless, Israel continues to violate all of these treaties without accountability or oversight.

In addition to the provisions regarding the right to enjoy a clean and healthy environment for all those under military occupation according to international laws, conventions, and treaties, such as the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in Resolution 2200A (d-21) on December 16, 1966, in Article (1), paragraph (2): "...All peoples, in pursuit of their own objectives, have the right to freely dispose of their natural wealth and resources without prejudice to any obligations arising from the international economic cooperation based on the principle of mutual benefit and international law. In no case shall a people be deprived of its means of subsistence...".

Undoubtedly, the violations carried out by the Israeli occupation contradicts with the laws of the occupation state itself before any other laws. Referring to the details of this case, the Israeli Penal Code of 1977 and its amendments stipulate that trespassing on someone else's property to commit a criminal act punishable by law is an offense. By reading Article 452 of the Israeli Penal Code, we find that the law punishes those who commit an offense or cause damage to property such as (a water well, a water reservoir, a dam, a floodgate, planted trees, a bridge, a tank, or a water cistern) with a penalty of five years imprisonment.

In addition to, Article 447 of the Penal Code states: "Anyone who does any of the following with the intent to intimidate, insult, or harass the property owner or commit a crime shall be punished by imprisonment for two years:

(1) Enters or crosses the property;

  (2) After entering the property legally, remains there unlawfully.

(b) A crime is committed under this section if the offender carries a firearm or a cold weapon, and the punishment is imprisonment for four years."

By reading the text of this article, we find that the Israeli Penal Code criminalizes the mere act of entering someone else's property without permission, with the intent to insult, harass, or intimidate, and punishes this act with two years of imprisonment. The punishment increases to four years if the offender commits any act on someone else's property using a weapon or a sharp tool, referred to as a "cold weapon." This is explicitly criminalized in the text of Article 447 of the aforementioned Israeli Penal Code. Additionally, a penalty of 5 years imprisonment is imposed on those who cause damage to property mentioned in Article 452. Therefore, the violator, the "settler," should face a compounded violation: the first for entering a property that is not theirs, and the second for trespassing on and cutting down the planted trees, resulting in environmental harm.

Therefore, the Israeli aggressor blatantly violates both international laws and treaties, as well as the internal laws of the "occupying state," in a clear violation. Consequently, the "Israeli judiciary" must hold the settlers accountable and punish them for these actions based on the provisions of their own laws. However, there is no legal accountability for the aggressors by the Israeli judiciary. Despite this, every human being on this earth has the right to live in a clean, healthy, and safe environment, free from any violation or aggression against it.

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

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

Settlers’ attack on farmer Jehad Al Dik land