Ramallah: Israeli colonists Thursday razed large tracts of Palestinian land in the village of Umm Safa, northwest of Ramallah. The head of the Umm Safa village council, Marwan al-Sabah, reported that colonists sneaked their way into the village, targeting a Palestinian-owned land in the Jabal al-Ras area, located east of the village.
According to National News Agency - Lebanon, the razed area serves as a crucial route connecting the neighboring villages of Deir al-Sudan, Ajul, and Aroura. This action threatens to isolate Umm Safa from its surrounding areas. The occupation has already closed the village's two main entrances since the conflict in the Gaza Strip escalated on October 7, 2023.
The Jabal al-Ras area has faced repeated attacks by colonists in collaboration with occupying forces. These forces have been bulldozing over 300 dunams of land that were previously planted with olive and grape trees for several months.
In a related incident, an extremist colonist allowed his livestock to graze on Palestinian land in the town of Deir Istiya, northwest of Salfit. Anti-settlement activist Nazmi Al-Salman informed WAFA that a colonist from the illegal outpost of Havat Ibn Haimer, established on Palestinian lands in Deir Istiya, grazed his sheep near the Maghr Al-Asmar estate, north of the town.