QALQILYA, May 10, 2026 (WAFA) – Israeli colonists demolished agricultural shelters on Sunday in the Bedouin community of Arab al-Khouli, located east of the town of Kafr Thulth in the West Bank province of Qalqilya.

Kafr Thulth Mayor Jihad Odeh said colonists, accompanied by a bulldozer, stormed the area and began demolishing 50 agricultural rooms belonging to the al-Khouli and Muqbil families. The structures were built of stone, iron, and metal sheets, and stood on an area of about 30 dunums within agricultural land totaling around 1,700 dunums planted with olive trees and wheat crops.

Odeh added that the Arab al-Khouli community has recently been subjected to repeated attacks by colonists, including physical assaults and ongoing harassment, which forced residents to leave the area and relocate to nearby Kafr Thulth while continuing to access and farm their lands.

He noted that the demolitions caused losses estimated in the millions of shekels due to the destruction of agricultural structures and crops.

Meanwhile, head of the Farmers Services Department at the Qalqilya Agriculture Directorate, Bashar Shawahneh, told WAFA that the area has been a fertile agricultural zone relied upon for farming and livestock for more than 80 years. However, repeated colonist attacks have significantly reduced the population, leaving only 10 families out of 25 that lived there since 1948.

Shawahneh said these practices aim to pressure farmers into leaving their land as part of efforts to alter the demographic and agricultural reality in the area.

The Arab al-Khouli community is surrounded by eight Israeli settlements, with access from Kafr Thulth serving as the only remaining route for residents.

M.N