By Ahmad Jaradat, Alternative Information Center (AIC)
http://alternativenews.dyndns.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=614&Itemid=1
Hebron Region * On 3 October, settlers from the Beit Hadassa settlement outpost in downtown Hebron threw stones at people on the main street, below the outpost. Owners of shops on the street stated that the settlers threw the stones and empty bottles at people in the streets, in full sight of Israeli soldiers, yet they did nothing to stop the attacks.
* On 5 October, a group of settlers came from the Hebron settlements and entered Nabi Younis Mosque in the Halhoul suburb, to the north of Hebron, and they prayed in it. The mayor of the town, Ziyad Abu Yousef, said that this was the third time in the last two months that the settlers entered the Mosque. In the past, settlers have entered the Mosque under the protection of the Israeli military. On each of the three occurrences, the settlers came in the early hours in the morning.
* On 9 October, dozens of settlers from Kiryat Arba’ threw stones at many houses in the west of the town, during a march organized by the settlers. Jamal Abu Is’afan said:
“During the marches organized by the settlers during the holidays, they stoned my house, and other houses. The settlers would walk from the settlement to the Ibrihim Mosque in the center of the city. They stoned our houses and shouted abuse at us, such as ‘death to the Arabs.’ The marches started in the morning, and forced us to stay in our homes to avoid their attacks. All these actions took place in sight of the soldiers who were with the settlers to protect them. It is known that these days, during the Jewish holidays, they attack us and attack our houses, most of the residents stay indoors and we live like we are under curfew.”
The same actions happened on 11 October, when the settlers stoned houses located on both sides of the main road that links the settlement to the center of the city. In Tel Rumeida dozens of settlers also stoned some Palestinians’ houses. The army imposed curfew in the center of the city for many hours during the week, to allow the settlers participating in the marches to process in the streets inside the city. Despite that, the settlers stoned many houses in many places in the downtown, especially near the Mosque.
* On 13 October, settlers from the Ramot Yashai outpost in the old city of Hebron stoned the house of Jamil Abu Haikal during both the day and night. The previous day, the family was prevented from harvesting their olives from trees near the house. The family called the Temporary International Presence in Hebron (TIPH), to help in harvesting the olives and protect them from settlers’ attacks. On the same day, the settlers from the Kiryat Arba’ settlement, to the east of the city, threw stones at the house of Sa’di Jaber, which is located near the western entrance of the settlement. These attacks took place in the sight of Israeli soldiers who did not stop the settlers. The same settlers attacked some residents on the main road, called “Prayers Road,” in Wadi Nssara, to the south of the settlement.
* On 14 October, the Israeli soldiers and settlers began damaging land located around the Barouck Israeli military base, located between Kiryat Arba’ and Kharseen settlements, to the east and north east of the city. They started construction of a cement wall of some six meters high around the base. Sources in the Land Defense Committees stated that 50 dunam will be inside the new wall, and this is part of the main project to make a contiguous geographical unity between both settlements, taking over more land in Wadi al-Grouse.
* On 15 October, settlers from Kiryat Arba’ continued to construction of a new road linking the main road in Wadi Nassara to the settlement. This road is 150 meters long, and it separates 20 Palestinian families from their land in the area. It also makes their movement very difficult because both the road which is under construction, and the main road, are exclusively for the use of Israeli settlers.
* On 18 October, settlers from Sosya settlement, to the south east of Yatta, began leveling and damaging five dunam of land belonging to Mahmoud Hasan Haddar from the nearby Palestinian village of Sosya. It seems that the settlers want to establish a new outpost in the place. Last September, the settlers brought some tents and one mobile home onto this land. The new outpost is one kilometer to the south of Sosya settlement. The residents and Land Defense Committees report that the settlers from Sosya are attempting to take over more land in the area, since for five days, those settlers planted 150 dunam of olive trees to the south of the settlement.
* On 19 October, settlers from the Avraham Avinu settlement outpost in the center of Hebron stoned Palestinian residents while they were going to the Mosque to pray. During this event, clashes between residents and the settlers occurred. Soldiers from the nearby military outpost opened fire on the Palestinians, causing injury to three. The injured people are: Ammar Abu Sunaina, 15, Husam Abu Husain, 13, and Shadi Sa’eed Ishatayya, 15. All of them were taken to the hospital for treatment. Shadi said that, especially during the month of Ramadan, “the settlers used to attack us when we tried to go to Ibrahimi Mosque for prayers”.
* On 29 October, the settlers from the Tanma’eel settlement, to the east of Yatta, attacked farmers and other activists, who came to harvest the olives in the area near the settlement. The settlers stoned them, and some clashes occurred between the settlers, and the farmers and international activists, before the soldiers came, and tried to prevent the farmers from working.
Nablus and North of West Bank * On 10 October, settlers from the Rotem settlement in the north vallies prevented the farmers from the village of Wadi al-Maleh from entering their land near the settlement. A settler came to the farmers, pointed his gun in their faces and threatened them. He ordered them not to return to the place, or he would shoot them and their goats.
* On 13 October, 10 settlers from the Hashmonaeem settlement, west of Ramallah, attacked farmers during the olive harvest. The settlers stoned the farmers while they were working on their land near the settlement. The farmers went to the Israeli police station. Later, the policemen stopped the settlers.
* On 19 October, four farmers from Farta’a village east of Qalqilya were injured when settlers from Gil’ad outpost attacked them by using clubs, knives and stones, during their work in harvesting the olives from the land near the outpost. The injures are: Ibraheem Mahmoud Salah, injured in the head, Najah Faeq el-Taweel, Bilal Bed llah Shana’a and Nada Bed El- Rahaman Shana’a. All of them were taken to the hospital. The settlers also shot in the air, to force the farmers to leave the land.