Rogue settler bulldozes 150 dunums of land under cover of dark
Al-Khader fields
[Ma'anImages]
The settler, who appeared to be acting alone, left the illegal West Bank settlement of Efrata with a bulldozer in the early hours of Friday morning and dug a road down the center of a large swath of a land growing almond trees and grapevines, crushing hundreds of plants under the wheels of the vehicle.
The land, in the Abu Bkir area just outside the center of town, is privately owned by several Al-Khader families. Locals said the settler appears to be attempting to confiscate the land and impose “de facto” realities preventing Palestinians from using it.
The Al-Khader municipal council is preparing a suit against the man that will be filed in the Israeli courts in the coming days.
The town and a neighboring village just south of Bethlehem, were handed an order authorizing the confiscation of 2,500 dunums (1 dumum is 1,000 square meters) in February. According to Al-Khader Mayor Ramzi Salah, 90% of the village landed is slated for confiscation, between the expanding settlements and outposts, the nearly complete Israeli separation wall.
