Violation: Burning of an agricultural greenhouse.

Location: Bardala village, Northern Jordan Valley / Tubas Governorate.

Date: April, 3^th   2025.

Perpetrators: Settlers .

Affected party: Farmer Moa’yed Abd al Ra’oof Mahmoud Hreshat.

Details:

On Thursday evening, April, 3^th 2025, Bardala village, located to the northern of Jordan Valley, witnessed a new attack to agricultural lands by a group of settlers, nearby to Annexation and Expansion wall, targeting agricultural greenhouses which used in agriculture. The damaged property belongs to farmer Moayed Abd al Ra’oof Mahmoud Hreshat , who supports a family of 7 members, including three females and two children.

It is worth noting that settlers sprayed a high flammable liquid on one of plastic houses, which led to partial ignition and burning of nylon material, which the construction of greenhouses was made, that also to burning several greenhouses covering a total area of 4 dunams, which had been planted with cucumbers, in addition to burning and damaging of 120 meters of irrigation networks, (quarter- inch).

Farmer Moayed Hreshat, reported the following to the LRC's field researcher:

‘’ I rely on agriculture as my sole source of income, as I own an area covering of 4 dunams planted with various vegetables, within agricultural greenhouses, and just a few meters away from annexation and expansion wall. On Thursday evening I received a call from one of the farmers informing me that the fire was near my land, immediately I headed to the site and saw the fire covering greenhouses, as I called the head of council village to call civil defense to intervene and extinguish the fire with several farmers to stopping the fire, as the cold weather preventing the fire spreading. The total losses amounted about 25,000 shekels.’’

About Bardala: 

The village is situated 25 km to the north of Tubas. It is surrounded by the Green Line (north), Raba (west), Ain al Baeda (east) and Tubas (south).

It has a population of 1607 people according to a 2017 census. It’s total area is 18329 dunum, 404 of which is built-up area.

The Israeli occupation devoured 252 dunums of its land to open the  bypasses road #’90. It also confiscated 819 dunums to build the Separation Wall(8197 in length)  and isolated 2100 dunums of Bardala land as a result.

• According to Oslo Accords, 90% of the village is area C, i.e. under Israeli authority while only 5% is area B.
• Areas classified as B is only 5% (910 dunums);
• Areas classified as C is 91% (16845 dunums).

According to the Israeli Criminal Procedures Order of 2022, "burning waste in an illegal location is subject to a fine of 2,000 shekels for an individual and 12,000 shekels for a company." The order further acknowledges that such practices can lead to chronic illnesses and an increased risk of cancer due to the inhalation of toxic substances.

Burning Agricultural Structures and Its Environmental Impact:

Most of people establish greenhouses and planted it with field crops, using irrigation network- reinforced plastic pipes, as farmers put his contents in these greenhouses included: plastic materials and pesticides.

The farmers rely on raising livestock as a primary source of income in addition to self-sufficiency for Palestinian families. However, these and all agricultural facilities have recently become a target for the Israeli occupation and its settlers. In addition to the demolition operations and threats by the Israeli occupation, they have also become an official target for the settlers, The settlers have begun to burn them, as in the case of the Hreshat family, whose greenhouses were burned by the settlers, causing a severe damage. Therefore, the settlers committed a grave crime against these greenhouses, and caused great harm to the Palestinian environment surrounding these agricultural facilities, especially when these structures made from plastic materials, And other contents all lead to the emission of various pollutants into the air, which causes discomfort and harm to humans, animals and agricultural crops as well, especially since plastic materials are rich in carbon - which is considered a greenhouse gas - and also during the ignition of fires, particles of ash fly and pollute the air and those materials evaporate and pollute the air and may endanger people's lives by inhaling vapors of plastic materials and other materials.

The burning of these greenhouses causes significant environmental harm, especially since they often contain plastic materials and chemical pesticides. This leads to the release of various pollutants into the air, causing discomfort and harm to humans, animals, and crops.

Plastic materials, rich in carbon, contribute to greenhouse gas emissions when burned. The fires also release airborne ash particles, further polluting the atmosphere. If chemical pesticides are present in the rooms, their evaporation during the fire releases toxic substances into the air, posing serious health risks to people who inhale these pesticide fumes.

Despite the fact that the Israeli Ministry of Environmental Protection is the responsible authority for environmental protection and pollution control, as stated on its official website—where it mentions that "air pollution does not stay in one place, nor does it know borders; it spreads according to climate conditions, winds, temperature, and humidity"—the primary contributors to air pollution are the settlers in the settlements and outposts across the West Bank. The burning of agricultural structures, trees, crops, other buildings, and even Palestinian homes and vehicles is a widespread practice among settlers. According to the Israeli Criminal Procedures Order of 2022, "burning waste in an illegal location is subject to a fine of 2,000 shekels for an individual and 12,000 shekels for a company." The order further acknowledges that such practices can lead to chronic illnesses and an increased risk of cancer due to the inhalation of toxic substances.

The burning of such agricultural greenhouses is no less harmful than burning waste; in fact, it is even more detrimental because it occurs on agricultural land that is privately owned by Palestinians. Therefore, the violation should be considered more severe due to the illegal entry onto someone else's property and the environmental harm caused.

Undoubtedly, the actions of the Israeli side violate not only international laws but also Israeli laws themselves. Referring to the details of this case, the Israeli Penal Code of 1977 and its amendments stipulate that trespassing on someone else's property with the intent to commit a crime is punishable by law. 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 to commit a crime, shall be punished with imprisonment for two years:

(1) enters or crosses the property;

 (2) enters the property unlawfully."

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

Reading the text of this article, it is clear that the Israeli Penal Code criminalizes the mere act of entering someone else's property without authorization, with the intent to insult, harass, or intimidate, and punishes it with a two-year prison sentence. The punishment is doubled if the offender enters the property and commits a crime, such as using a weapon or sharp tool, or even vandalizing agricultural land by cutting, burning, or destroying it. This is explicitly prohibited in the text of the aforementioned Penal Code.

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