Israeli settlers build illegal outpost on Palestinian farmland around occupied Hebron

Israeli settlers seized one of the most fertile stretches of Palestinian farmland in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron, in what activists say is a prelude to building an illegal settlement outpost. 

Dozens of settlers, backed by Israeli soldiers, erected tents and caravans on Palestinian land in the Al-Buwairah area, east of the southern West Bank city of Hebron, according to Palestinian Authority's news agency Wafa.

The settlers came from the nearby illegal settlements of Kiryat Arba and Kharsina, land that already belongs to Palestinian families.

Al-Buwairah is a constant target of repeated attacks by settlers due to it being prized agricultural land.

Hebron is a particularly hostile environment for Palestinians due to a large number of Israeli settlers in the city.

Around 800 ultra-nationalist Israeli settlers live in the heart of Hebron, the largest Palestinian city in the West Bank. The settler enclave is protected by twice as many Israeli soldiers.

Earlier on Wednesday, hundreds of settlers raided the grounds close to Al-Lubban Al-Gharbi village near the city of Ramallah and began setting up an outpost.

The settlers arrived on the land under military protection in a convoy of buses and private vehicles. This is often a prelude to the seizure of Palestinian land.

Last May, over 400 pro-settlement activists convened at an event organised by the Nachala movement, an extremist settler group, to discuss plans to found ten "new communities" in the West Bank for July.

In June, a report by an Israeli NGO revealed that Israel has significantly ramped up its construction of illegal settlements on Palestinian land over the past year and demolished more Palestinian homes than the government of former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which left office in June 2021.

The report by Peace Now revealed that Israel’s construction of illegal settlements on Palestinian land increased by 62 percent under the government led by Naftali Bennett, whose ruling coalition recently fell apart.

Israel has occupied the West Bank illegally since 1967, and commits various abuses against Palestinian civilians.

Israeli forces and settlers routinely harass Palestinians in the occupied territories by demolishing homes, poisoning livestock, vandalising property and carrying out often deadly violent attacks.