The community of Khirbet Humsa have faced repeated demolitions, destruction of their water supply and invasions of their village in the name of ‘Israeli military exercises’. Now, the occupation has gone one step further. The community is under constant surveillance – as they started their annual wheat harvest wheat the occupying army turned up and forced them to leave the fields.

In the past the wheat harvest has been delayed and crops have been damaged during Israeli military training, but this is the first time they ordered farmers to stop their harvest with no pretext.

Rashid Khudairi of Jordan Valley Solidarity said:

“This is a new type of occupation policy. The occupation has demolished Humsa 6 times during this year but has not succeeded in its plan to displace its people. It is now instituting a new policy to punish Palestinian farmers, destroy their economy, and force them to leave the land.

“In the Palestinian valleys, the occupation uses all kinds of policies, such as depriving children of water, education, health and housing. Today, it wants to make families poor so that they have to leave in order to get work and money to sustain their daily lives.

“All these policies are against international and humanitarian law.”

To date, 11th May 2021, the wheat is rotting in the fields around Humsa. The occupation has the area under constant surveillance and has forbidden the local people from working or bringing building materials into their village.

This is part of the occupation’s ongoing plan to annex the Jordan Valley, bit by bit. We have seen what can happen at the nearby Ein al Sakout and Ein el Hilwe, where settlers have been given the green light to move in and fence of Palestinian water springs.

The Palestinian economy is under constant attack. At the end of 2020, as farmers in the area were planting their wheat harvest, the occupation confiscated their tractors and other farm vehicles to prevent them from planting.