RAMALLAH – The Israeli occupation authorities evicted six Palestinian families from the northern Jordan Valley on early Monday, a Palestinian official said. Aref Daraghmeh, the head of Wadi Al-Malih village's council and in charge of Palestinian Bedouins affairs n the Jordan Valley, said that the families, with eighty members, leaved the Khirbet Hamseh area to make way for Israeli military training. Daraghmeh said that the eviction of the eight families “aim at confiscating their lands in Khirbet Hamseh for the expansion of Jewish settlements in the area.” He added that the new orders come weeks after the Israeli authorities handed 150 eviction orders to 250 Palestinian families in the Jordan Valley under the pretext that they are living in or near areas designed as “firing zones”. The families are living in the Khirbet Yarza, Khirbet al-Ras al-Ahmer, Ein Shibli and Al-Aqaba. The official added that the residents of two villages have suffered repeated demolitions in the past, including of their residential structures, animal shelters and even the Khirbet Yarza mosque. According to Daraghmeh, around 18 percent of West Bank land is a closed military area for the purposes of military training, often termed “firing zones”. He added that the majority of these zones are located in the Jordan Valley and along the eastern slopes of the Bethlehem and Hebron Governorates. More than 5,000 Palestinians reside in such areas in around 38 communities, mostly Bedouin or herding communities, many of which existing before the areas were designated as closed military zones. In a separate development, Israeli forces arrested 11 Palestinian residents in several West Bank cities. Palestinian sources said that nine residents were arrested in Nablus area and two in the cities of Hebron and Jenin. The spokesman of Israeli army said that the detainees were wanted by the Israeli security forces for participating in pro-Gaza Strip protests and were taken to unknown locations for questioning by the Israeli internal intelligence service Shin Bet. Israel regularly carries out arrest raids throughout the West Bank, including in areas under full Palestinian Authority (PA)'s security control. The Palestinian Authority (PA) says that the daily Israeli raids in the West Bank cities and villages hinder its security forces to tighten their grip on the Palestinian territories.
