The tight siege imposed by Israeli occupation forces on three homes in the Jabal Ras al-Ain area of Qusra, south of Nablus, entered its fourteenth consecutive day on Saturday. The measures aim to isolate the besieged families from their surroundings, restrict their movement, and prevent aid and solidarity from reaching them. There are fears that the siege is being used as a tool to impose a new settlement reality in the area.
Local resident Luay Abu Rida said that the occupation forces continue to tightly close off the area, preventing residents from moving around and blocking aid convoys and solidarity activists from reaching the besieged families.
He explained that the occupation forces allow settlers freedom of movement around the besieged homes, while simultaneously seizing one of the houses and converting it into a military outpost where occupation soldiers are stationed.
These measures coincide with ongoing attempts to establish a pastoral settlement outpost that was set up in the Ras al-Ain area at the beginning of this year. On August 9th, settlers renewed their tents, while simultaneously closing off access roads and cutting off electricity and water supplies to the area. The occupation forces declared the area a “closed military zone,” and converted 16 houses in Ras al-Ain and its surroundings into military barracks and observation posts, in a move that increased restrictions on the residents and tightened their isolation from their surroundings.
