A statement issued by Land Research Center / Arab studies society in the forty -fourth anniversary of the internal Land Day

In the anniversary of the internal Land Day Palestine is struggling against two pandemics, the first one, is the current world wide pandemic “the Corona virus”, while the other is, the occupation pandemic and its terrorist settlers.

The Israeli Occupation that ignores and violates the International and Humanitarian Law, is not yet satisfied with all the Palestinian houses that are already demolished, and all the lands and properties that were confiscated. So far, the Israeli arbitrary occupation had demolished 170,000 houses and confiscated more than 21 million dunums, and uprooted 3 million trees, they also built the expansion and segregation wall that blocks out the sun with a total of 700 km, in addition to that they set up 900 road block and gates, and opened 1400 km of colonial and bypass roads.

That was not enough for them, they built 528 settlements and outposts in the heart of West Bank, settlers still sophisticating Palestinians after they became like a cancer spreading fast in the West Bank trying to build their own state in the only 22 % that remained for the Palestinians, this became the status que in Palestine after the world announced recognition of Israel on the 1967 borders. Today, there are about 850,000 settlers living illegally in the West Bank.

Jerusalem was announced as an international regime to be administrated by the United Nations, but once again the United States president Donald Trump ignored international law, and announced the US Administration’s recognition of Jerusalem as a capital for the so called state of Israel, and consideration of the Israeli settlements in West Bank as legitimate.

After this dark history of oppression , and while the whole world is fighting a pandemic that threatens the mankind existence, and Palestinians are adhering to the World Health Organization instructions to overcome this pandemic, such as social distancing and quarantine , Israeli illegal settlers are spread like a virus in Palestinian lands destroying crops, uprooting trees , and chasing herders and their herds, they are all around Palestinian suburbs from Masafer Yatta and Beit Ar-Rush At-Tihta in Hebron , and in Al-Mazra’a Al-Gharbiya , Froosh Beit Dajan, Huwwara and Khirbet Um Al-Marajem in Nablus , to Az-Zawiya and Bruqin in Salfit, Tarqumia, Sa’eer, yatta, they are also present in Al-‘Isawiya and Sur Bahir in Jerusalem.

The Israeli Occupation still on going with expanding settlements, issuing demolition and eviction orders against Palestinians, who are paralyzed in the face of these measurements due to the lockdown, this was reflected in the expansion of Efrat in the recent days.Which one of the two pandemics will the Palestinians face in this Land Day!

The occupation’s cruelty is limitless, the occupation forces were recorded in security cameras spitting on the streets and public facilities in Palestinian cities and villages trying to spread the Corona virus , this was seen in Hebron and other places that surround settlements from the south of West Bank to its north , for the same purpose, in Qalqilya  the occupation authorities released wild pigs  in Palestinian agricultural lands to spread the disease

Despite all that, in Land Day the Palestinian people deeply rooted in their land, and stand on the top of the urban history will keep resisting the occupation pandemic and the Corona pandemic, until the humanity regains its sparkle, and restore the justice balance.

The blood of the Land day martyrs will never drain as long as the occupation remains in the land of Palestine

Glory to martyrs... Glory to prisoners... Freedom for Palestine

Land Research Center

March 30th 2020

Jerusalem - Palestine