In a cave between Al Aqaba and Khirbet Yarza, settlers have set up a new outpost, coordinating closely with the settlers based in the outpost at Al Aqaba. This new settlement is just 1km from the home of a local family and overlooks their house, so they are never free from the fear that they are being watched and that the settlers could come to attack at any time. The strategy of this ongoing violent settler campaign is to force Palestinian families to leave the area. Palestinian have reason to be scared, knowing these are the same settlers that murdered Alaa Khaled Muhammad Sobeih in Al Aqaba on 8th April.

There are currently around 6 settlers staying in the cave, but they have their cattle and a dog with them. A regular strategy of settlers is to herd their cows into Palestinian homes and farm buildings to destroy animal food that is being stored there. Settler dogs are consistently used to attack Palestinians and there have been several incidents in the area during the last week. The settlers also have a horse that was stolen from a local Palestinian family.

On 12th, 14th and 16th April the settlers took over the small rain-water reservoir that local Palestinian families depend on for their water. They bathed in it and brought their donkey into the water also, contaminating it to make it unusable for Palestinians.

Nearby Khirbet Samra is also experiencing regular attacks. On 12th April settlers hammered nails into wooden planks and hid them into the ground to harm Palestinians and their families. On the same day the Settlement Leader threatened the people of Samra, saying that they have got to leave or: “They will not even be able even to drink water”. The water tanker on its way to Samra to fill the family’s water tank was detained and the driver was then forced to turn back. Half an hour later, the Settlement Council came and walked among the families tents. They told local Palestinians that they should leave their land and move to Tubas town – a regular refrain that reflects the aim behind the occupation attacks, but the Palestinian families stood firm and said: “I don’t want to go to Tubas because I own this land.”

Approximately 10km further south, in Hamra, settlers from Moshe Sharvit’s outpost started to establish an ‘expulsion outpost’ above the homes of the Abu al-Kabash family on 14th April. Two days later on 16th April a young settler, dressed in black, ordered their dog to attack a Palestinian girl bringing Chai to an international activist.