11 Palestinian Families in Nablus District Given Order to Leave Area within 24 Hours
11 Palestinian families in the Nablus District village of Khirbeit Tana were today (19 December) given 24 hours by the Israeli military to pack their things and leave the area.
According to the United Nations Displaced Working Group, the military told them that if they do not comply with this order, all their livestock and materials will be confiscated.
This order impacts the families who did not suffer a demolition last week. Of the 35 families in the village, 15 suffered a demolition last week; another 11 are now threatened with displacement; leaving only 9 families that dwell in caves unaffected.
Khirbet Tana is a village east of Nablus and just west of the Mekhora settlement, overlooking the Jordan valley rift, with a population of about 300. The villagers are primarily shepherds and farmers who rely on the nearby springs and shared water wells for their animals and crops. Because of their close proximity to the settlement they are often targets of violence at the hands of the settler community.
Khirbet Tana has been demolished three times to date. The first demolition of the village occurred on 5 July 2005. Israeli forces destroyed the entire village, including the school, save for a 150 year old mosque. The Israeli military again destroyed around thirty structures, including a school, homes, and shelter for farm animals on 10 January 2010. This destruction stemmed from an Israeli High Court ruling sanctioning the demolition of the village and stating that the farmers removed from their land.
11 Palestinian Families in Nablus District Given Order to Leave Area within 24 Hours