Waking up before dawn in the small village of Fasayil, deep in the heart of the Jordan Valley, we did not know what to expect. We were hoping to see, and maybe speak to some Palestinians that work in the nearby Israeli settlement farm: Tomer. (more…)
Life in Upper Fasayil is precarious. It is in the Jordan Valley that comprises 30% of the Palestinian West Bank. Since 1967 the local community have gone from being a thriving farming community to a group of families squeezed into a villages with mud roads, single story houses, and animal pens. All the farming land around their village has been stolen from them by Israeli settlers, now used to produce crops for profit. They are prohibited from building any new buildings, or from repairing their existing homes. (more…)
In the heart of the Jordon Valley, set on the hillside of Al Jiflik is a small Palestinian community. What was once a peaceful agricultural community is now a picture of devastation.
Since the occupation in 1967 the village has been caged in by settlements and their land stolen. Al Jiflik is situated in area C, which is a no build area and completely surrounded by checkpoints. The land which is still considered by the Israeli government as Palestinian is too dry to farm, as water supplies are minimal. Each individual is allowed only 72 cubic metres per day from the settlement supply; hardly enough to live on, with no hope of sustaining agricultural work. The people are forced to work in Israeli settlements, working long days for only 60 shekels (roughly £10) The complications which arise in being paid are incredible. Palestinians will only receive pay for 30 out of 46 days labour, sometimes without getting paid at all.
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We are now in Tubas which is a largish town in the north of the Jordan valley. We are staying with a delightful family, the father(quite young) is a journalist for the Palestinian news and writes all sorts of articles on what is happening here with the occupation etc. He told us that he met Tony Blair at a school in the Jordan valley which had just been set up bythe Palestinian authority. He was not very impressed. Tony was a bit surpised to realise that some of the children did not know who he was. He was surrounded by body guards. By all accounts he was told by the children about the awful hassle they experience every day going through the checkpoints.They explained that they are regularly made to raise their t -shirts to check they have no weapons-No reaction whatsoever. (more…)
The Tubas friendship and solidarity group met students, staff and the head teacher from Al Jifflik school for a very productive session. We were astounded when we got there to see not a tent school, but a brick building with a tin roof.
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As our delegation is coming to an end, I was asked to write something about the two farmers’ cooperatives that we have visited in the Tubas region. My mission of finding out more about the agricultural situation in Palestine has largely failed because of a lack of time, but hopefully I can do more research in the future. However, I can draw a rough picture of the situation many farmers are facing around Tubas and in the Jordan Valley. (more…)
Brighton-Tubas Friendship And Solidarity Group Press Release
For more info contact, thewallmustfall@riseup.net
HOUSE DEMOLITIONS PLANNED IN FASAYIL
The IDF visited the village of Fasayil, close to the Israeli settlement of Bet Syel in the Jordan Valley, on Sunday and told residents that five houses would be demolished after the Jewish holiday.
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Here is an article in today's Palestine Times. PT is a new English language daily here, which only has a few of its articles on its website www.ptimes.org so I have written it out:
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