‘They took our toilet’: How a settlement has squeezed a Palestinian village

What the report says

Al Jazeera reports that residents of Umm al-Khair, a Palestinian village in Masafer Yatta in the occupied southern West Bank, say a newly established Israeli settler outpost has sharply restricted their access to nearby land and basic facilities. The outlet says the outpost, described as illegal and as an extension of the Carmel settlement, was set up last September about 20 metres from the home of Salem and Ikhlas al-Hathaleen and their eight children.

According to Al Jazeera, Ikhlas al-Hathaleen said the family has repeatedly been blocked from reaching its sheep enclosure behind the house, at times only being allowed in under Israeli military escort to feed and water the animals. She also said settlers placed barriers near the family’s separate outdoor bathroom in early July, and that the Israeli army later designated the area around it a closed military zone, forcing the family to use a neighbour’s toilet and cross a road used by settler vehicles.

The report cites Khalil al-Hathaleen, head of the village council, as saying settlement expansion has accelerated through the new outpost, settler roads and expanded areas of control. He said livestock numbers in Umm al-Khair have fallen from about 3,000 to roughly 700, and alleged that olive trees and agricultural land have been taken while demolition orders affect 14 homes and structures.

Al Jazeera also quoted a legal aid researcher who said the restrictions have affected livelihoods, homes and basic services, and residents who described children living in fear. The broader significance is that settlement growth in the West Bank remains a central obstacle in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and is widely viewed internationally as unlawful, though Israel disputes many such characterizations.