In one of the most extreme shows of force used against a tree-planting action, today around 1pm, dozens of Israeli soldiers entered the neighborhood of Saffa, in Beit Ommar. They began to attack farmers from the ‘Adi and Soleiby families, who had been planting trees they obtained with Israeli and international support as part of a larger tree-planting program of the Palestine Solidarity Project for several hours in the Wadi Arish area below the Bat ‘Ayn settlement. Soldiers fired rubber-coated steel bullets and tear gas at the farmers and amongst the … Continue reading

Three farmers from the Soleiby family, Jabber Soleiby, 42, his brother Hassan, 37, and cousin Fathi Soleiby, 42, were working their land in the Wadi Abu Rish area of Saffa, just under the Bat ‘Ain settlement early this morning when a crowd of approximately 40 settlers descended on them from the settlement, throwing stones, some with slingshots. The farmers fled the area, fearing they would be harmed. All three men, sons of Mohammed Soleiby and Abdullah Soleiby, know all too well how dangerous large crowds of settlers can be: Abdullah Soleiby, 82, had his skull fractured in April, 2009 by settlers who attacked him and his brother, holding Abdullah down as they bashed his head in with stones.

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At approximately 2am Monday, December 21, 10 Israeli military jeeps entered the center of Beit Ommar. For the second time in 3 weeks, Mohammed Abu Ayyesh, brother of murdered teen Mehdi Abu Ayyesh, was arrested. Mohammed, who was originally arrested on December 3, was released last week. His brother, Tha’er, who was arrested on December 11, is still in Israeli custody. Last night, the home of Sa’id Abu Ayyesh was raided for the third time this month as Israeli soldiers tore apart the home and again arrested Mohammed, 24. His male and female family members were beaten as they tried … Continue reading

On December 20, 2009 at 9am four farmers from Beit Ommar, Mohammed Ikhlayl, ‘Ayed Ikhlayl, Kalil Ikhlayl, and ‘Ali Nayef, were plowing their agricultural land approximately 700 meters from the Bat ‘Ayn settlement, alone. Suddenly, they were shot at four times from inside the settlement. No one was hit but Israeli soldiers arrived shortly after, acknowledging that they knew settlers had shot at the farmers, and demanding that the Palestinians leave in order to “avoid problems”. The farmers refused, and remained on their land for another 2 hours before they were finally forced to leave by the Israeli soldiers. At no time did the Israeli soldiers, in theory in charge of security for the area but … Continue reading

Updated: Video

Today at approximately 12 noon, settlers from the Karmei Tsur settlement between the Palestinian villages of Beit Ommar and Halhul, blocked Route 60, the main highway between Jerusalem and Hebron, used by settlers as well as Palestinians. They began attacking Palestinian cars on the road, jumping in front of them and forcing them to stop before damaging the vehicles and in at least 5 cases, opening the car doors and beating the Palestinians inside. Shortly afterward, scores of Israeli military and civilian police … Continue reading

December in southern Occupied Palestine is the ideal time to begin planting new trees to replace what was destroyed in the previous year. For more than 6 months, since the beginning of April, 2009, Palestine Solidarity Project has been accompanying the three brothers Abdullah, Mohammed, and Hamad Soleiby and their families to work on their land in Saffa near the Bat ‘Ayin settlement. They suffered enormous loss physically and financially at the hands of arguably the most extreme settlers in the West Bank. Both Abdullah and Hamad were seriously injured by settlers this year, and all three lost over 500 fruit trees, including old olive trees, to intentional destruction by Jewish Israeli settlers.

From our … Continue reading

The recent Army arrests of five young men in Beit Ommar have re-infected festering wounds among the families of the village. For the Abu Ayyesh family the arrests of two sons Mohammed, 24, and Thaer, 19, come on top of the October death of their brother Mehdi, 17. In March 2009, Mahdi was shot in the head from less than 20 metres while shopping for a falafel sandwich during an Israeli army incursion. The army is reported to have delayed calling for medical help and then set up a checkpoint to further prevent the ambulance from reaching critically injured Mehdi. 27 pieces of metal were discovered in Mehdi’s head and he died without regaining consciousness in October, 2009. … Continue reading

At approximately 2am Wednesday, December 3, 25 Israeli military jeeps, carrying over 100 soldiers, entered the village of Beit Ommar in the Hebron District. They then set up three checkpoints inside the village, one on the north-west side of town near the city council building, and two in the center of the village. The soldiers split into 3 groups and began invading homes and destroying property. They broke into the homes of Ahmed Abu Maria, a PSP volunteer, Ahsan Abu Ayyesh, Sa’id Abu Ayyesh, the father of Mehdi Abu Ayyesh who … Continue reading

Thursday, November 26, residents of Beit Ommar, along with members of PSP and international volunteers sought to remind the Israeli military and settlers of the ownership of privately-owned Palestinian land on which an electricity line is being built. Led by Mousa Abu Maria, son of the land owner Abdelhamid Abu Maria, the group made their way to the electricity towers. They then hoisted a Palestinian flag between the towers, flying high above Route 60 for the settlers of Gush Etzion (for whom the new electricity line … Continue reading

Last night, November 17, at approximately 10pm soldiers occupied a home in Beit Ommar. The owner of the home, Khalid Sabarna is a doctor in Beit Ommar. Doctor Sabarna’s home, which is currently under construction, is approximately 1 kilometre from the main road. A group from Palestine Solidarity Project went to the house the next morning and observed the Israeli flag flying from house. Internationals and PSP members climbed the steps to the 2nd floor but were stopped by soldiers who refused to let them enter the house any further or take pictures. The soldier in charge said there was an officer coming to explain the situation, but the … Continue reading