Occupation forces are moving ahead with plans to block off access to the south and west of Bardala and Kardala villages in the north of the Jordan Valley. A new apartheid ‘security’ road and fence are planned that will run from the ‘48 wall to Highway 90. It will block farmers’ access to their land and leave the villages with only one access road controlled by a checkpoint. This move represents the next step in the occupation’s annexation of the Jordan Valley in line with the 1967 Allon Plan.

On November 18th, Israeli occupation forces gave two demolition orders and a stop work order to families residing in Bardala, on private Palestinian land, in the northern Jordan Valley.

Khaled Rushdi Sawafta, whose family has already been forcibly displaced three times by house demolitions in Bardala, was ordered to demolish a shelter for livestock by November 4th.
Mujahid Suleiman Ahmed Sawafta was given a stop work order and Anwar Jamil Mahmoud Sawafta was given a house demolition order for livestock shelters, both to be completed by November 9th. Residents were told that their ability to access the land will be entirely cut off.
Distributions of theses orders have increased in the area in recent months as occupation forces have started to build a new road in the Northern Jordan Valley.

For Palestinians, a new road does not mean accessibility or movement, but instead surveillance and control. The road is a ‘security’ road, created in order to close the Western and Southern area of Bardala and Kardala villages; it will span from the ‘48 wall to highway 90. The creation of this road will be followed by the construction of ‘security’ fences and will force movement to and from these villages to only one road and through a checkpoint. Consequently, residents are then deprived of freedom of movement and kept from accessing their land; lands that are tilled in the winter, some of the few lands utilized in this region for rain-fed agriculture such as wheat, barley, and chickpeas. Furthermore, these military expansions prevent livestock owners from accessing farming and shepherding land, which are tens of thousands of dunums, and which are the only place the village residents have for livestock pastures. As well as having a negative impact on the financial situation of the farmers, livestock owners, and on the freedom of movement of all residents and Palestinians in surrounding communities, this road construction also prevents the development of the villages in the future.

The occupation aims to isolate the residents of the Northern Jordan Valley completely, annexing the land and forcing displacement from Area C, a clear and outlined tactic of Israeli apartheid.

The isolation of these villages is only the beginning of the occupation’s expansionist plans.
The Israeli Allon Expanasion plan highlights the creation of a wall from the North of Bardala to the East of Al Quds. This plan means Israel will retain major parts of the West Bank, all points which are strategically important territories. Israel’s goal is the complete control of the West Bank, and ultimately, the complete displacement and destruction of Palestinian life.