5 days ago
- Politics
- Days of Palestine
Palestinian Families Face Systematic Displacement in Northern Jordan Valley
DaysofPal – Israeli occupation forces continue to enforce a systematic campaign of displacement targeting Palestinian communities in the northern Jordan Valley, particularly in Khirbet Samra and surrounding areas. Families have been forced to abandon their homes due to escalating settler violence and military harassment, amid deafening silence from both Israeli authorities and the international community.
Local sources report that Palestinian residents are being driven out under pressure from near-daily military training exercises, the burning of crops, confiscation of livestock, and the erection of settler grazing outposts. These outposts now dominate essential pasturelands and water resources, all supported by Israel's Settlements Council.
Arif Daraghmeh, a researcher on Jordan Valley affairs, described the situation as 'forcible displacement through cumulative violence.' He explained that settler groups, emboldened by the ongoing war, are effectively acting as an extension of the Israeli military. Targeted areas include al-Farisiyah, Hamsa, al-Malih, al-Burj, and Ras al-Ahmar. In one case, the family of Yasser Abu Aram was expelled, with all their possessions and farming tools confiscated.
Human rights activist Fares al-Fuqaha warned of the impending collapse of Palestinian life across 21 communities in the region. He cited daily violations such as land closures, livestock theft, and explicit death threats. In one recent incident, a settler security officer threatened farmer Burhan Bisharat at gunpoint, demanding he 'leave or die.'
Bisharat likened the area to an 'open-air prison,' stating that settler violence has intensified dramatically since October 7, reaching levels unseen since the 1967 occupation. He urged for urgent material and logistical support to help Palestinian farmers stay on their land 'before it's too late.'
Moataz Bisharat, a Palestinian official overseeing settlement monitoring in Tubas Governorate, said Israeli authorities are increasingly outsourcing land seizures to settler-run grazing outposts and regional settlement councils. These bodies report directly to far-right Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who reportedly instructs police to ignore complaints filed by Palestinian victims.
According to Bisharat, land confiscation in the Tubas area and the northern Jordan Valley has surged eightfold in just four years. In one alarming case, a single settler in the Abu al-Qandoul area controls 17,000 dunums. Another settler has claimed over 28,000 dunums spanning Khirbet al-Hamma, Raba, Ibziq, and al-Malih.
The northern Jordan Valley comprises nearly one-fifth of the West Bank—around 214,000 dunums. Of this, over 80% is now under Israeli control. Roughly 11,000 Palestinians remain, facing continuous threats of expulsion and increasingly aggressive tactics aimed at their erasure.
Despite ongoing appeals by residents and activists, the warnings of a 'slow, creeping uprooting' continue to fall on deaf ears. The international community's inaction has left the door open for unchecked settler colonialism to further erode Palestinian life in the Jordan Valley.
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