Israeli occupation placed cement blocks at the main entrance leading to Masafer Yatta area to take over the site

OCCUPIED AL-QUDS, Aug.11, (ST)- Israeli occupation forces  placed cement blocks at the main entrance leading to Masafer Yatta area near the village of al-Tiwani to the south of Hebron, in preparation to take over the site to establish a military gate and tower there, according to a local activist.

The coordinator of the protection and steadfastness committees in Masafer Yatta, Fuad al-Amour, told WAFA Israeli occupatiin placed today cement blocks at the entrance to Masafer Yatta after posting a military order two weeks ago to seize the entrance.

The activist noted that the Israeli occupation aims to encircle the Masafer Yatta area, thus isolating around 4000 Palestinian residents living there by seizing the sole entrance leading to it and controlling residents’ movement in and out of the area as part of Israel’s plans aimed at aggravating the suffering of Palestinians to pressure them to leave the area for the benefit of settlement expansion.

He added that the seizure of the sole entrance leading to Masafer Yatta will greatly increase the suffering of Palestinian residents, and force them to take long and very difficult alternative roads which are very close to settlement outposts scattered in the area, thus putting them in danger of being attacked by settlers.

To be noted, the Israeli High Court’s recently ruled in favor of a decision to remove 12 Palestinian villages in Masafer Yatta and displace thousands of their Palestinian citizens in order to build illegal settlements.

Basma Qaddour