Sha’ab al Butum – the Civil Administration demolishes house in wartime

Before our trip to Sha’ab al Butum, and in accordance with Laila Jabarin's request, we stopped to buy some groceries for the family who had to move to a room in the village, after their home and the surrounding farm had been repeatedly destroyed by settlers from Avigayil, the settlement across from them.

At the Meitar intersection, at the split between Route 60 and Route 317, cameras are being installed and soldiers are guarding the workers during the installation. At Maktal Umm Salem, the Israeli flag flies as an announcement to all, we expelled them too.

About 1 km from the Asael settlement, about 500 meters from Route 317, a new outpost. 2 transit vehicles, a shed and a trailer.

We turned to the road that Muhammad knows to enter Sha’ab al Butum, and in front of us were 3 civilian jeeps.

The driver of the first jeep signalled for us to stop.

He asks "Where are you from?"

Muhammad answers that he is from Lakiya and I answer that I am from Lehavim.

He continues to ask: "what are you doing here?"

I answer: "visiting friends." No need to expand on how surprised the questioner was. What sort of friends, he asks.

I asked: "who are you?"

His answer: "I am from the Nature Reserves Authority".

I understood that he is probably Yedidya Talia, from the notorious Talia farm, who was appointed to the position not long ago, and feels that the entire area is under his control. They asked us to stop on the side because they were followed by bulldozers and other military and police vehicles.

A military jeep stopped next to us again. An officer with the rank of captain got out of the car and asked who we were and where we were from. We introduced ourselves as friends of the village people. When he also expressed bewilderment, I told him that they are human beings, and we are visiting them because they are our friends.

At this stage we already knew that they had come to destroy the house of Ismayil, the son of Ishak Jabarin. Laila informed Muhammad about this by phone, at the time of the demolition.

It is hard to describe the sight of dozens of our friends, Ishak's family members, and other residents of the village on the ruins of the house which had just been destroyed. The Palestinians managed to save some of the contents of their modest home in a small pile. The boys and girls climbed the ruins and tried to find objects. A tiny chick is rescued and a girl holds it compassionately. It is hard to describe what we saw. It's really terrible.

Hot coffee was served to us despite the terrible experience.

Laila Jabarin, to whom we had been going before we knew what awaited us, was also there, and says that there is another house they destroyed, near where she and her family live.

We meet Ibrahim Jabarin, sitting with other men near the ruins. They also managed to extract a little of their meagre possessions. According to him, and according to 3 of his brothers who were present, each of them had already had houses destroyed three times.

They will not leave; this is their place.

They serve us coffee, and it warms the heart.

They point to the small village in front of Sha'ab al Butum , the second crossing of Route 317 and we see the vehicles of the civil administration and the bulldozers that came to destroy there as well. According to them, the name of the village is Ghaziwi.

Laila is waiting for us with her extended family in the room. She, her husband Mohammad and her 3 sons with their grandchildren live there together. They received mattresses from the Red Cross, and Erela from the Village Group bought a washing machine and gas for them. They insist that we join them for lunch, stuffed cabbage with the whole family.

We returned home after a difficult and painful experience, as in all shifts since the current government came into in power.

The photographs cannot convey what we felt, but at least this.