Palestinian farmers reclaim land from settlement

Ma’an -- Aided by the Palestinian Agricultural Relief Committee, farmers from a southern West Bank village have reclaimed lands inside an illegal Israeli settlement.

Imad Ash-Shaer, 42, from Husan village, said he gave up hope 10 years ago that he would be able to farm his land, annexed by an Israeli military base at the entrance to Betar Illit settlement.

“Israeli forces used to stop us accessing our land, even beating children if they came close to the military,” Ash-Shaer told Ma’an while standing on his reclaimed land inside the settlement.

Ash-Shaer’s family managed to reclaim all 48 dunums (about five hectares) of their land, most of which is inside the barbed wire fence surrounding Betar Illit.

Farmers can only use one entrance to the land, and initially, Israeli soldiers would confiscate their tractors as they attempted to cross.

After investigations, PARC found that Israeli authorities had no legal basis to deny farmers entry, only a security pretext. Farmers asked soldiers to summon police officers when they were denied access, and the police had no legal pretext to stop the farmers, project coordinator Ibrahim Manasra explained.

In this way, six families from Husan have reclaimed their land, at an estimated cost of $1,000 per dunum. PARC covered 75 percent of the costs, and farmers paid the rest.

Manasra said reclaiming land inside illegal Israeli settlement is one of PARC’s most important projects.

Settlers continue to harass the farmers, Ash-Shaer added. “They erected a movable house a few days ago, and harassed farmers until police evacuated them,” he said.

Betar Illit was established in 1982 on land owned by Palestinians from the villages of Husan, Nahhalin, Battir, Wadi Fukin and Jaba. The settlement now houses 40,000 settlers, most of whom are ultra-orthodox