Israeli Settlers Have Been Besieging Three Palestinian Families In Their Homes In The West Bank For Over A Week
The UN's human rights office called the siege "criminal" and said it was "clearly aimed at forcing" the families to leave.
Illegal Israeli settlers have been besieging three Palestinian families in their homes in the occupied West Bank village of Qusra for nearly a week, in what Palestinians say is an attempt to steal their homes.
A group of Israeli settlers began blocking access to the three Palestinian homes on the edge of the village on Aug. 9, and set up a tent outside the properties, leaving at least 15 Palestinians, including two children, trapped.
The settlers cut off water and electricity and prevented people from entering or leaving the homes.
They also prevented an ambulance from reaching a sick toddler.
Aisha Abu Rida, one of the residents under siege, said settlers had blocked every entrance to her home.
"We are surrounded by settlers, but we are steadfast, God willing. We will not leave our home, no matter what happens," she told Al Jazeera.
As the siege drew growing international attention, Major General Avi Bluth, who commands Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank, visited Qusra on Aug. 12 and promised to "evacuate" the settlers.
Israeli troops later removed the settlers' tent but failed to remove the group, leaving their bedding and other equipment behind.
Soldiers withdrew after attempting to drive out the settlers using riot-control measures, and the siege continued.
The following day, Israeli troops ordered more than a dozen other Palestinian families to leave their homes, saying soldiers needed the buildings as bases to operate against the settlers.
Two families were forced from their homes, while other residents refused to leave out of fear that they would not be allowed to return.
Some of the families were eventually moved together into one house, while Israeli soldiers took over several other homes in the village.
Residents have accused the Israeli military of protecting the settlers rather than removing them.
"This is all a charade," Qusra resident Abdul Kareem Hassan said. "If they were serious, the whole operation would not take them one hour. We're talking about 20 settlers."
Qusra's mayor Abdel Azim Wadi, told Al Jazeera that residents had seen Israeli soldiers praying, barbecuing and dancing with the settlers, and said they did not believe the army was genuinely trying to help the besieged families.
On Friday, Aug. 14, about 100 activists marched to Qusra to bring the besieged families food and water, but were stopped by Israeli forces.
Then, settlers again erected a tent outside a Palestinian home before Israeli soldiers arrived and it was taken down, as the siege approached a week.
The UN's human rights office called the siege "criminal" and said it was "clearly aimed at forcing" the families to leave, warning that "time is running out" before they are displaced.
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry condemned the attacks as "systematic acts of terrorism" aimed at forcing Palestinians from their land and accused Israel of using settlers to advance policies of displacement and annexation.
Earlier in July, the same group of settlers besieged a Palestinian family's home in the neighboring village of Jalud for more than two weeks, after which the family left, and settlers moved in and planted a flag on the roof as a claim of ownership.
The siege comes as settler violence and displacement have intensified across the occupied West Bank.
Israeli forces have also issued demolition notices for Palestinian homes and structures in other parts of the West Bank, while rights groups say settler attacks are increasingly being used to push Palestinians from their land.
According to Israeli human rights group B’Tselem, 64 Palestinian communities have been completely displaced over the past three years, while another 15 have lost residents, with more than 4,800 Palestinians driven from their homes.
Cherry Mohamed
Nyx Joy
Cherry Mohamed
