Illegal Israeli colonists are stealing Palestinian land in Susiya

Over the last two months, illegal Israeli colonists in the Susiya region have appropriated Palestinian agricultural land, in-laid irrigation piping, cultivated, and now fenced-off the vital Palestinian agricultural lands off the main highway, 317, between the illegal jewish settlements of Susiya and Karmel, south of Hebron.

The Palestinian land in question is vital agricultural land and the owners, who reside in the area, have not given permission to the colonists to either build or work on it. Yet, the colonists are vying for the land and with repeated illegal building and cultivating tactics are, astonishingly, stealing the land before the Palestinians’ very eyes.

Interestingly, one of the arguments justifying their illegal land-squatting is that the land had been vacant for a number of years and was, obviously, not valued by the owners. According to a settler worker and two soldiers, dormant land which is successfully worked can then be considered the property of the person who has cultivated it. This does not, however, consider the context of the situation: the very reason the elderly Palestinian land-owners have stopped working on the land is due to the violent aggressions and harassment of the colonists in the area, frightening the Palestinians off their land.

They have been moved off of the land by menacing of the illegal colonists. The owners of the land very much want to use it for agricultural purposes and have tried—mostly unsuccessfully—to file complaints at the nearest police station, Kiryat Arba, nearly 2 hours away. These illegal tactics have been largely successful in the region, with many Susiya residents and land-owners leaving their land for nearby cities and towns.

On various occasions, Israeli activists from Ta’ayush and activists from the various groups maintaining a presence in the region have documented on film and video the colonists stealing of this agricultural land.

Over a month ago, in one of the earlier acts in this newest land-grab incident, Israeli and international activists alerted Israeli police and soldiers to colonists’ activity on the land: a trench had been dug, the tractor still at one end, and piping had been laid. When the activists arrived, one settler remained on the land near the tractor, but disappeared before soldiers and police arrived substantially later on.

Soon after soldiers had arrived, approximately 20 colonists from local colonies amassed and belligerently surrounded activists, verbally abusing us. Israeli soldiers and police present did virtually nothing to stop their harassment of the activists.

In various subsequent incidences, the same settler has been found—and documented—working the land, driving in fence posts, and erecting the fencing itself around the Palestinian land in question.

Observing and documenting the illegal work and appropriation of the Palestinian land, we’ve been threatened by the colonists.

The army again, when they finally arrived, did nothing to stop the construction of the fence, nor to reprimand the colonist for his illegal building and stealing activities. Little to no impartiality is shown on the part of the soldiers with respect to the colonist.

Soldier: “He says that is it his property. … You know, even if it isn’t his property, just go away, he’s working it.

The illegal colonist continues to appropriate the land and water resources to grow grapes which forecast a 60,000 shekel revenue in wine production, according to a contracted worker. At various times during a recent episode of working on the land, the illegal colonist approached both of us who were filming, shouting, and physically threatening us.

The other Israeli admitted at one point that the land did not belong to him, but that they anticipated a revenue of 60,000 shekels from the grapes they would grow for wine production.

The police, despite repeated calls, did not venture to the scene, nor did they come when requested in an incident the previous day. While the police and army are very aware of the (illegal) situation, they do virtually nothing to prevent or stop the activity. Police generally do not respond to our telephone calls. The army will come, but greatly delayed—usually (always) arriving after colonist digging/building activity has ceased for the moment. By the time the army arrives, colonists are either away from the scene or just leaving. Both army and police point the burden of authority in deciding ownership of the land; both army and police reject this responsibility and shirk any duties in taking action against the colonists.