Mufaqara – violent settlers throw stones and wound children
A shift to Mufaqara, Masafer Yatta
Our shifts are usually planned, but sometimes, following an unusual case, we change the destination.
It was the same today. We are on our way to Mufaqara, to Fadel and his family.
It is important to note that the entrance to the village, through which we used to arrive, is blocked, like all villages in the occupied territories.
The road we travelled passes through At-Tuwani, and so on our way on a dirt road between At-Tuwani and Mufaqara, we met Naim Adara, the brother of Nasser Adara from At- Tuwani and his wife, in their agricultural area. First of all, we were interested in their son, Zacharia, who a few months ago was shot in the stomach by a settler, in broad daylight, near the mosque and was very seriously injured. We were happy to hear that his condition has improved slightly.
Naim shows us a rock fence that he built himself in 1986, to demarcate his territory. He says that a settler from Havat Ma’on tried to move the rocks with his van, and of course failed. The settler told the police, who were called by Naim, that it was an accident. Do you understand?
We continue to Mufaqara. A torrential rain falls, and Fadel and his sons herd the sheep in the wadi between them and the nearby settlement, Avigayil.
I try to photograph the settler vehicles standing by the road leading to Avigail and watching Fadel and his sons, the shepherds. The settlers don’t rest for a minute.
With the family are two volunteers who accompany the villages in the area, as much as possible. Well done to them.
The girls of the family invite us to the cave where there is a stove heated by wood, and next to it we are comfortable in this cold.
Fadel arrives to meet us and tell us why he called us. The day before, at 2:30 p.m., four settlers from Avigayil arrived at Fadel’s wheat field with their herd, so that they would graze and feed. One of them is an adult, and the three are boys. At that time, Fadel was grazing his flock near his olive grove.
Two of the young and violent settlers threw stones at 11-and-a-half-year-old Ahmad and his brother Adam, also a boy, at Fadel and the herd. As a result, Ahmad injured his leg and was rushed by ambulance to the Yatta Hospital. He suffers from pain and limping and will stay at home to recover.
Four sheep were injured and Fadel called a veterinarian to treat them.
The police, that arrived following a complaint to the police, took testimony from the offending boys and a human rights lawyer, Neta Amar, is handling the case.
The masters of the land who are doing everything to expel the Palestinians from their territories, workday and night.
A-Tuwani
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A-Tuwani
The locals came to a-Tuwani during the 20th century from the village of Yatta. They settled in abandoned ruins, utilizing the arable land, pastures for grazing sheep and the abundance of natural caves for habitation. The residents who settled in the caves came from families who could not purchase land for houses in the mother villages, as well as shepherds who did not have enough land to graze. They were joined by clan members who quarreled with other families in the mother locality.
Some of the residents today live in concrete buildings built above the caves. In the area of the village are several water cisterns and an ancient water well called 'Ein a-Tuwani. Local residents are forced to buy water in containers and transport them through many road blocks to the village. With the help of international organizations, an electrical system was installed in the village. In the late 90s of the 20tTh century, an elementary school was established in the serving several small villages in the area.
In 2004, MachsomWatch began visiting and reporting from the Khirbet Tuwani cave village, which suffers badly from the settlers of nearby outposts, and especially from the extremist Ma'on outpost. . The settlers contaminate cisterns, poison the flocks and uproot trees.Particularly notable is the harassment of children from the surrounding villages on their way to school in a-Tuwani, so much so that military escort of children is required to separate them from the attackers (this was arranged following an initiative of the organization's members). In the past year, the escort has been without the vital presence of overseas volunteers.
Near a-Tuwani there are several families who have returned to the caves due to the incessant demolitions of the civil administration (as there is a total construction ban in all of area C). Destroyed are not only residential and agricultural buildings, but also water pipes, machinery. Even water cisterns are clogged up. a-Tuwani residents have created an association for non-violent demolition protests, but in the past year the army’s harsh harassment and settler violence have intensified and escalated. The incident of the small generator confiscation, which left a young man paralyzed, is one of many examples - any legitimate protection of property rights leads to violence and even shootings by the army and the civil administration.
Updated April 2022
Muhammad D.May-13-2025Susiya - at Ahmad and Halima Nawaja'a
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Mesafer Yatta
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Masafer Yatta
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