After 13 years of litigation, the Israeli Supreme Court issued its final decision in the case of the Arab Bedouin village of Umm al-Hiran, located in the Naqab (Negev) desert. The decision allows Israel to carry out its racist plan to demolish the village and forcibly displace its residents, for the sole purpose of establishing a new Jewish town called 'Hiran' over its ruins.
The Court found that the residents were not illegal trespassers – as initially claimed by state – but were moved there in 1956 by military order, after being displaced from their original village of Khirbet Zubaleh. Nonetheless, the Court ruled that, because they were on 'state land', the state could retake it and do with it as they wished. The Court did not ask why the new town had to replace the Arab village, when there are vast and empty lands in the surrounding area. The Court also ignored the Bedouin residents' political, social and historical roots to the land.
Umm al-Hiran is a microcosm of the wider injustices faced by all Palestinians, including in Israel, which have persisted since 1948. On this Nakba Day – with the support of the Bedouin citizens of Umm al-Hiran and with our local and international partners – Adalah is launching a public campaign to raise awareness of the village's struggle and demand the cancellation of the residents' eviction. We invite you to explore our campaign page and to take part in our effort to prevent the destruction and displacement of the village.
Join us as we fight to #Save_UmAlHiran.
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