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by Jack Muir - IMEMC & Agencies

Israeli settlers seize five dunums belonging to 67-year-old Ali Khader Issa from al-Khader village, south of Bethlehem in a continuation of illegal land grabs in the area.

Ahmad Salah who is Coordinator of the Popular Committee against the Wall and Settlement, stated that a group of settlers seized the land in the Ein Qasis area, to the west of the village, and installed a mobile home.

The Palestinian owner was told that the five dunums now belonged to Israel and that he is forbidden from accessing or working on his land.

Ahmed Salah Issa has lost more and more of his land since the erection of the annexation wall. More than 15,000 dunams, constituting more than 75% of the agricultural land, belonging to al-Khader village was illegally grabbed by the Israelis in 2007 as the wall cut through its land. Four years later in 2011, Issa was one of 7 families who had a further 73 dunams of land stolen around their villages on the pretext that their land was too close to the separation wall

Ali Khader Issa has been regularly harrassed by the Israeli military who have uprooted 85 olive trees, released dogs and closed the road that leads to his land.