On May 29 at around 11:00 PM, settlers set fire to a field near a family’s home in Humsa, northern Jordan Valley. The fire was later put out and two ATVs were seen driving back and forth from the field. The settlers then called the military and the police and were seen talking to each other on the road leading to the family’s house, before approaching and beginning to harass the family at half past midnight. ISM activists were also present.
The military first asked for one of the father’s identification papers, and told him that he is no longer allowed to access any of his fields that surround his house. After this, two settlers began to walk menacingly around the family’s house, accompanied by the military. It was clear that the soldiers were collaborating and receiving instructions from the settlers.
The settlers began yelling and threatening the family, including the women, and accused them of setting the field on fire. The family resisted these lies, and told the military that they had been asleep and in their homes when the fire began. The settlers then began to escalate the situation, and threatened the Palestinians to return next time without the military, insinuating that they would come again to commit criminal acts of violence. The military then filmed the family and again repeated that the Palestinians are not allowed to access their land. The settlers and the military finally left around 30 minutes later, at 01:00 AM.
This is yet another example of collaboration between settlers, who have committed criminal acts of violence against Palestinians time and time again, and the Israeli military to work towards the ethnic cleansing of Palestinian land.
This Palestinian family was attacked just a couple of months ago by a group of settlers in the middle of the night, where over 400 sheep were stolen. Forbidding the family from accessing their own land is now a further attempt of the Zionist regime to displace the Palestinians by cutting them off from their means of sustaining themselves.
Despite the illegal activities of settlers day and night, the family continues to fight to remain on their land. Glory to them, and may they remain on the land of their ancestors for thousands of years to come.