Israeli forces today seized agricultural equipment and machinery from Al-Auja village, north of Jericho, according to local sources.
The General Supervisor of Al-Baidar Organization for Bedouin Rights, a human rights organization, Hassan Mleihat, said that an Israeli army force barged its way into the Jordan Valley village, and confiscated a tractor and sheep farm equipment belonging to two villagers.
Horizontally located 10 kilometers to the north of Jercho, al-Auja has a population of some 5,470 and occupies a total area of some 107,000 dunums.
Under the Oslo Accords, an agreement made 25 years ago that was supposed to last just five years towards a self-governing country alongside Israel, the Palestinian Authority was given control over a small pocket of land classified as Area A, which occupies 16,519 dunams and accounts for 15.5 percent of the village’s total area. In contrast, Israel maintains control over the remainder, classified as Area C.
Israel has severely restricted Palestinian access to water in the area, particularly that local water springs, including ‘Ein al-Auja (al-Auja spring), are located within Area C. Local water springs are susceptible to dryness as a result of Israel’s control over water. Israel have set up huge wells over the local hot water basins, reducing the quantity of water flowing from the spring and causing destruction to thousands of dunums of agricultural land irrigated by the water spring.
Israel has seized at least 2,257dunams belonging to the village for the construction of four nearby colonial settlements, 2,152 dunums for the construction of a military base, besides to more land for opening settler-only by-pass roads, pushing the villagers into a crowded enclave, a ghetto, surrounded by walls, settlements and military installations.
Source: Palestine New & Info Agency