On 17th October four farmers from Ein Al Hilwa in the northern Jordan Valley village were fined 300 shekels each for crossing an Israeli road with their sheep.

Ahmed Salame (25), Saty Aaliam (36) and Oday Qadri Daraghmeh (20) and Fathy Aaliam (55) were accompanying their sheep to graze on a mountain nearby, when they were confronted by two settlers from Maskiyyot colony and an Israeli police officer. The Police officer demanded to see their IDs and proceeded to fine them 300 shekels each for wandering into a prohibited area. The men were grazing the sheep on a mountain nearby and had to cross a road in order to get them there – but this road is an Israeli road. They can’t get anywhere without crossing this road, which is right beside their homes.

One week ago…

The Israeli Occupation forces were carrying out yet more military training near the village. At around 9pm, the soldiers came into the village and checked all the houses, asking members of the community: “Where are the weapons?” They woke up children as they entered homes. Rhayel Kaabneh, a man from Ein Al Hilwa, told Jordan Valley volunteers that they entered his home, picked up a medicine bottle from the table, shook it and demanded to know where the weapons were hidden. But the army knows this is a community of farmers. They know there are no weapons here. It is just a tactic of harassment to force the people out of the Jordan Valley.

Ein El Hilwe is under huge amounts of pressure from the army and settlers to leave the area – which Maskiyot wants to expand the settlement – and harassment is occuring in some form every 2 to 3 days.