Three years of the West Bank's third Nakba'

"Fresh off the seventh forced displacement of his central West Bank Bedouin community since 1948, Abu Najjeh was not in a contemplative mood leading up to Nakba Day. He said he was in a rush, too busy reacting to the crises of the day the continuing third Nakba, as he called it. This is not a proper place to live that's why I'm in a hurry waiting for a car to take me, said Abu Najjeh, the mukhtar, or leader, of the former Bedouin community of Ein Samiya, speaking from a recently erected tent in the outskirts of Rammun before rushing to find his sons amid unfolding violence in Jiljilyya."

"Just that morning, Jewish settlers had stolen hundreds of sheep and two tractors from a member of his extended family in Jiljilyya, to the north of Rammun, as well as shooting and killing 16-year-old Yousef Kaabneh also from Abu Najjeh's Kaabneh clan. Like the community of Ein Samiya, Yousef and his family had been forcibly displaced from Wadi as-Seeq in 2023, one of dozens of Palestinian Bedouin communities emptied since October 7, 2023."

"Already ascendant, the Israeli far right has used the Hamas-led attack on Israel, along with the cover of Israel's genocidal war on Gaza, to ramp up attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank and seize more land. Yousef's family had relocated to Jiljilyya, hoping to finally be safe from settler attacks in an area under Palestinian Authority (PA) administration and where Israeli civilians are prohibited from entering under Israeli law."

"But on Wednesday morning, dozens of settlers rampaged through Jiljilyya, Sinjil and Abwein, all in Area A. The armed settlers opened fire on residents, shooting Yousef dead. The killing took place two days before Nakba Day, May 15, when Palestinians mark the"

Palestinian Bedouin communities in the West Bank have been repeatedly forced from their homes since 1948. Abu Najjeh, leader of the former Bedouin community of Ein Samiya, described rushing amid ongoing crises and called the current period a “third Nakba.” Settlers stole hundreds of sheep and two tractors from his extended family in Jiljilyya and shot and killed 16-year-old Yousef Kaabneh. Yousef’s family had been forcibly displaced from Wadi as-Seeq in 2023 and relocated to Jiljilyya seeking safety in an area under Palestinian Authority administration. Despite expectations that Israeli civilians are prohibited from entering under Israeli law, dozens of settlers attacked multiple communities in Area A, opened fire on residents, and killed Yousef shortly before Nakba Day.

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