Walid Assaf (front row, second from the right) and activists at the new al-Yasser village in the Jordan Valley.

TUBAS, November 17, 2016 (WAFA) – Palestinian and international activists Thursday set up a new village near Khirbet al-Hamma area in northern Jordan Valley in protest against Israel‘s demolitions in the area, according to Walid Assaf, head of the Anti-Wall, Anti-Settlements Commission of the Palestinian Authority.

Assaf told WAFA that activists had set up the first tent in the new Al-Yasser village meters away from where Israeli settlers had set up tents as a prelude to taking over the land and build a settlement in the area. He said the activists intend to prevent the settlers from taking control of the area.

“We came here today to give support to the residents of Khirbet al-Hamma to rebuild their village and to build the new al-Yasser village to confront the racist laws imposed by the occupation authorities,” Assaf said recalling Israel’s demolition of 32 residential structures in the area in the last two months alone.

He said soldiers and members of the so-called Civil Administration as well as settlers were surrounding the new village apparently in preparation to evict the activists.

Assad said the new village “is a message to the Israeli settlers and army that this is a Palestinian land” and that the Palestinians will never accept laws that will legalize settlement outposts.

Previous Palestinian attempts to build defiance villages in the Jordan Valley were faced with strong Israeli military reaction and the activists were quickly evicted and detained.

Palestinians consider these acts as popular non-violent resistance to Israel’s land grab and demolition of Arab homes policies in the Jordan Valley.

Assaf said Israel had seized more than 32 percent of the Palestinian land under the claim it is wasteland.

M.N./M.A.