For the past two weeks, the Israeli forces have been escalating their intimidation measures in the village of Wadi Fukin, located west of Bethlehem, as convoys of Israeli armored military vehicles have been regularly invading the village from the direction of the illegal settlement of Tzur Hadassa. During these raids, the Israeli soldiers immediately seal off all entrances and exits to the village, imposing a strict military cordon that prevents anyone without an official Wadi Fukin address from entering the village or leaving it. This move reflects the ongoing policy of systematic isolation imposed on the village.
During such raids, the Israeli forces spread throughout the village, carrying out a series of coordinated home raids. In each incursion, the soldiers force all members of the household, including children and the elderly, to gather in a single room. Mobile phones and ID cards are usually confiscated, and a photograph of each individual is taken.
The operations extend beyond mere presence and intimidation. Each Palestinian was subjected to individual questioning about their personal information, including family status, occupation, and workplace. Soldiers documented every room of each house through photography, including private spaces reflecting the daily lives of families. This documentation extended beyond homes to include surrounding agricultural lands owned by each family, as well as their vehicles and storage units.
These raids typically conclude before dawn, leaving behind a deep sense of fear and anxiety, particularly among women and children, and a growing perception of insecurity among the population. This recurring pattern points to a deliberate and systematic policy aimed at terrorizing the population and reshaping the demographic and geographic reality of the area.
The repeated nature of these operations signals a clear escalation in the tools of Israeli control over the western rural areas of Bethlehem, particularly Wadi Fukin, as part of a broader strategy to sever rural villages from the urban center and undermine their resilience through the deliberate creation of a coercive environment which would lead to the forcible transfer of Palestinians from their communities.
Recent developments on the ground further reinforce this interpretation. Construction has reportedly been approved by the Israeli authorities on key infrastructure projects in and around Wadi Fukin, including the extension of the annexation wall, the expansion of Route 375, and the implementation of a new sewage pipeline project serving the illegal settlements in the area. Such measures reflect a broader Israeli strategy of annexation, where Israel imposes unilateral facts on the ground, tightening control over the western rural belt and isolating the entire western rural cluster—specifically Battir, Husan, Nahalin, and Wadi Fukin—from the city of Bethlehem.
This comes in light of the recent developments, particularly the erection of a military gate at the entrance of Al-Khader village following October 7th, which constitutes the main geographic conduit linking this western rural belt to Bethlehem, making its control strategic for severing these villages from their natural urban environment.
These systematic incursions and the accompanying practices, including the use of force, arbitrary detention, mass surveillance, and collective punishment, constitute clear violations of international humanitarian and human rights law. The illegal settlement enterprise, including its infrastructure built on occupied territory, is a flagrant violation of international law, including international humanitarian law, international human rights law, and international criminal law.
The repeated night raids, the targeting of civilians, and the deliberate creation of a coercive environment through constant intimidation, disruption of daily life, and erosion of residents’ sense of safety is a well-documented strategies employed by the Israeli occupation to facilitate the forcible transfer of Palestinians. These measures, paired with the potential imposition of a permit regime and severance from Bethlehem, amount to grave breaches of international law and demand urgent and immediate international accountability to halt further displacement of Palestinians and the illegal annexation of their lands.