Tuesday, 10 August 2010 11:40 Various organisations in Israel
Source: The Aletrnative Information Center (AIC)
This morning police forces demolished the village of el Araqib for the third time in two weeks. The village residents, however, who remain on the eve of Ramadan without water and shelter under the blazing sun, began rebuilding the shelters from wood even before the police left the area. Left-wing activist Gadi Elgazi was detained.
Tens of left-wing activists, Jews and Arabs, slept in the village and are assisting the residents to rebuild; one activist was detained.
The demolitions began at 5.30 a.m. Two bulldozers were accompanied by 100 police officers, mounted police and trucks. The forces removed water containers and the remains of shelters that were constructed since the last demolition, in order to prevent reuse of these materials. Families, including infants and the elderly, were forcibly removed from their shelters. Tens of left-wing activists from Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Beer Sheva were present during the demolitions, having slept in the village to express solidarity with the residents. The residents and volunteers resisted in a non-violent manner. Activists in the village report that the demolitions were accompanied by violence toward the villagers and activists. Professor Gadi Elgazi from the Tarabut movement was beaten and injured in his nose. He was detained whilst speaking with the police, asking them to refrain from demolishing.
Residents with the assistance of volunteers are now busy rebuilding their shelters. A resident of the village expressed his anger and rage that the demolitions occurred on the eve of the month of Ramadan, holy to Muslims. “They have no God,” he said, adding that “we will continue to cling to the land of our forefathers and rebuild the village until our right to live there will be recognized by the world.”
The Israeli Land Administration is determined to destroy the village, and the Jewish National Fund plans to plant trees in the area in order to prevent the residents from returning. This is despite the fact that ownership over the land has not yet been established, and is currently being deliberated in the Beer Sheva Regional Court.
The village of el Araqib has been located in the area between Beer Sheva and Rahat already since the 19th century. Residents of the village, the Aturi family, worked the land at the beginning of the 20th century and as both Turkish and British documents testify, they also paid taxes on their land. The village even has an ancient cemetery of the resident family. The residents were removed by state authorities in 1951, and were promised this was a temporary move for military training and that they could return to their village in six months. However, since then they were never allowed back on their land. In the decades since, the residents returned to work their land, and in the 1990’s returned to live there. Their ownership over the land is currently being discussed in a long and complex court case in the Beer Sheva regional court, and academic researchers have already testified on behalf of the residents’ ownership over the land.
Third Demolition:
Police forces demolished the village of el Araqib for the third time in two weeks this morning, Tuesday August 10, 2010. The demolitions began at 5.30 a.m. Two bulldozers were accompanied by 100 police officers, mounted police and trucks.
Tens of left-wing activists were on-hand during the demolitions and helped residents rebuild once the police left. One activist was detained. Residents have been left without water and adequate shelter under the blazing Negev desert sun, on the eve of Ramadan.
For more information, visit http://alternativenews.org
Tens of left-wing activists were on-hand during the demolitions and helped residents rebuild once the police left. One activist was detained. Residents have been left without water and adequate shelter under the blazing Negev desert sun, on the eve of Ramadan.
For more information, visit http://alternativenews.org
Ethnic cleansing in Israel: Al Araqib demolished for the 3rd time:
The Bedouin village of Al Araqib in the Negev, southern Israel was demolished for the 3rd time in two weeks on 10 August 2010 at 5.45 in the morning.
One Palestinian Bedouin man can be seen attempting to dismantle his own house before bulldozers get to it, in order to save the materials from destruction. Israeli police prevent him and the Israeli and international activists helping him.
One Palestinian Bedouin man can be seen attempting to dismantle his own house before bulldozers get to it, in order to save the materials from destruction. Israeli police prevent him and the Israeli and international activists helping him.
[Also see this related post with more videos: Fascist Israel Razes Second Bedouin Village within a Week - Demolishing Al Araqib Village]
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