On 6th December Israeli occupation forces (IOF) confiscated two tents, which were being used as a school in Isfey al Fauqa, a village situated within the region of Masafer Yatta in the South Hebron Hills. Israeli forces – with tear gas canisters at the ready – also destroyed a toilet which had been donated to the community by international NGOs. They used sound bombs to disperse the local residents – including schoolchildren – in the process.
Solidarity visit
We visited Isfey al Fauqa school the day before the second demolition took place. Local residents told us that the school had been established to provide education for 22 students – from the villages of Isfey al Fauqa, Isfey al Tahte, Tuba and Musa Zain – who would otherwise have to walk at least 4km over the mountains to get to school.
“You will find me on my land
I belong to my people, I sacrifice my soul for them
My blood is Palestinian”
Local residents told us that they would build their school again.
What’s the context:
The communities of Masafer Yatta have been under more and more intense pressure since May 2022, when the Israeli High Court ruled that there was nothing to prevent Israeli forces from expelling Palestinian residents from the area. This has resulted in increasing violence and harrassment from the Israeli Occupation Forces.
Local people have been fighting to remain in Masafer Yatta since the Israeli army established a firing zone there in the 1980s, in contravention of international law.
“This will be a school again”
Soon after the confiscation, new tents were brought to Isfey al Fauqa, so that the residents could continue in their struggle for their children’s education. One local resident told us that “no matter how many times they demolish our school, we will rebuild it again and again”.
This article was originally published by ISM Palestine