Press Release: Israeli Settlers set fire to a house-tent in the Palestinian village of Susiya

[Note: According to the Fourth Geneva Convention, the Hague Regulations, the International Court of Justice, and several United Nations resolutions, all Israeli settlements and outposts in the Occupied Palestinian Territories are illegal. Most settlement outposts, including Havat Ma'on (Hill 833), are considered illegal also under Israeli law.]

December 29th, 2010

Susiya - On the night of the 28th December 2010, Israeli settlers attacked the Palestinian village of Susiya, setting fire to a house-tent .

Around 3.00 am, the Palestinian villagers were awakened by the fire caused by flaming bottles. The fire was presumably set by three men who were seen running away to a car.

According to the witnesses, the men who set the fire were Israeli settlers from the nearby settlement of Suseya.

This is the last of several acts of violence perpetrated by Israeli settlers against the Palestinian communities of the South Hebron hills.

A villager declared: "Someone who throws a bottle of oil here it means to kill people... We want the police to investigate fairly and to arrest the settlers."

The owners of the burned house-tent made a complaint to the Kyriat Arba police station.

According to Yesh Din, an Israeli human rights organization, 92% of police investigations following complaints filed by Palestinians against Israeli settlers end in a failure: the complaints are lost, or the files are closed after the police failed to find suspects or present sufficient evidence against suspects.

Operation Dove and Christian Peacemaker Teams have maintained an international presence in At-Tuwani and South Hebron Hills since 2004.