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.