Palestinian Land in the Gaza Strip Confiscated to Expand Israeli Settlements
Ref: 54/2000
Date: 4 May 2000
On 28 April 2000, the Israeli Governmental Properties Department served official notice on Mohammed Suliman Al Astal, that he was prohibited from paving a road on his property and ordering him to vacate the land on which the road was built.
Al Astal had paved a road on his private land in order to facilitate access to a garden on his adjoining land located in the Mawasi Area of Khan Younis.
Since April of this year an escalation in settlement activity has been taking place in the area. The activities include the construction of a number of green houses on the land owned by Suliman Al Astal. During the past two years large areas of his land (approximately 1000 dunams) were confiscated by settlers.
In related developments, settlers built three new housing units in Tel Katif settlement which is located on the beach between Khan Younis and Deir Al Balah.
Furthermore, on 1 May 2000, a group of armed settlers prevented Ahmed Ayaash Al Sha’ir from working his land (30 dunnams). According to Al Sha’ir about 20 settlers under the leadership of the settler Ami (responsible for Gush Katif settlements) prevented him, under the threat of weapons, from working his land. The next day, the settlers planted 100 olive trees on about 15 dunnams of Al Sha’ir’s land. The settlers had built a hut to sell alcohol 300 metres away from the land in question, as well as a petrol station and a building alongside the eastern border of the land. The building is used to smuggle Israel defective goods (factory seconds, goods past their use-by-date etc) into the PNA areas.
The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights expresses its deep concern at the policy of continuing expansion of settlements and settlement activities adopted by the Israeli authorities. This policy violates Palestinian human rights and the concerned international conventions and humanitarian laws. PCHR repeats its call to the international community, and particularly the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention, to fulfil their obligations under the Convention and to intervene to protect Palestinian civilians and their property.
Annexed: A copy of the notice served on Mohammed Suliman Al Astar
