WashPost narrates the expulsion of Palestinians from West Bank
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The US news outlet takes the angle of the Al-Najjar family, whose home was demolished on May 11.
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Safa Muhammed Aba Al-Najjar, left, and Yusara al-Najjar sit on a bed frame in front of what used to be their house in the West Bank, before it was demolished by the Israeli army on May 11. (The Washington Post)
An article by the Washington Post narrates some of the sufferings that Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, who are subject to what it called "the biggest mass expulsion of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank since the 1967 war when hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fled or were driven from territories captured by Israel."
The Post interviewed members of the Najjar family, whose home is being attacked by Israelis for the second time in 5 months.
On May 11, 2022, a neighbor of the Najjar family in the West Bank warned that a bulldozer is coming. For the second time - however, this time, the family house could be gone for good, as "Israel" plans to expel over 1,000 Palestinians to create a firing range for the occupation forces.
Read more: “Israel” demolished Palestinian village for 201st time
The Washington Post writes that historical documents presented by Palestinians attempting to prove that the proposal to establish a firing range, decades ago, was created to prevent Palestinians from claiming the land.
“We had 30 minutes to get out what we could,” said Yusara Al-Najjar, who was born in Al-Naqab, 60 years ago.
Ahead of Biden's visit, demolitions have sparked concern in the US, especially after "Israel" approved building 4,200 new housing units in the West Bank.
The EU, according to the outlet, has urged the Israelis to put the demolitions to a halt. The United Nations, furthermore, warned that the expulsion of Palestinians will be “a serious breach of international and humanitarian and human rights laws.”
The Israeli occupation forces push back, saying that demolitions were in accordance with "some legality": “The Supreme Court fully accepted the State Of Israel’s position, and ruled that the petitioners were not permanent residents of the area,” the statement said. “The court also noted that the petitioners rejected any attempted compromise offered to them.”
The news outlet writes that in the 1980s, Israeli officials "laid claim" to a number of areas in the West Bank, "for the stated reason of creating military training grounds," for instance, Masafer Yatta, a region as large as 8,000 to 14,000 acres, was designated as Firing Zone 918.
However, according to the Post, Palestinian and even Israeli human rights activists argue that the real purpose behind the firing zones is to tighten "Israel's" stronghold on the area by driving Palestinians away from it, essentially expanding Israeli settlements.
The Post also provided evidence for the contention. Ariel Sharon, then-agriculture minister, told Israeli newspaper Haaretz: “We have an interest in expanding and enlarging the shooting zones there, to keep these areas, which are so vital, in our hands.”
"According to advocates, the repetitive demolitions which amount to strategic harassment meant to drive the families away.
"Residents and their advocates repeatedly applied for permits to build houses and string power lines. Military officials, saying no one was allowed to live inside a firing range, denied the applications and then regularly dispatched armed demolition squads to knock down the “illegal” structures," the article writes.
Nidal Younes, head of the Masafer Yatta council, said “There is the law that works for the Jews, but for us it is nonexistent."
Yusara Al-Najjar described an Israeli bulldozer's most recent unannounced appearance, which arrived at their location with 12 soldiers and automatic weapons.
“They didn’t say why they were here, they gave us no papers,” she said. “But we knew.”
