Area C

Area C

Area C covers 60% of the West Bank and is home to an estimated 180,000-300,000 Palestinians and to a settler population of at least 325,500 living in 125 settlements and approx. 100 outposts. Israel retains control of security and land-management in Area C and views the area as there to serve its own needs, such as military training, economic interests and settlement development. Ignoring Palestinian needs, Israel practically bans Palestinian construction and development. At the same time, it encourages the development of Israeli settlements through a parallel planning mechanism, and the Civil Administration turns a blind eye to settlers’ building violations.

What is Area C?

Featured update

20 Nov 2016

Military forces some 80 residents of Ibziq, half of them minors, to spend two nights away from home because of military training

Civil Administration officials arrived at the community of Ibziq to deliver temporary evacuation order. Photo by ‘Aref Daraghmeh, B’Tselem, 15 Nov. 2016

Today, 20 Nov. 2016, Civil Administration officials handed evacuation orders to 14 families in Ibziq, north of Tubas. The families, 78 people, including 42 minors are to evacuate from Monday early afternoon to Tuesday morning, and for the same time Tuesday to Wednesday. They will have to spend two nights outside, away from home. The military has been training extensively throughout the Jordan Valley in recent weeks, turning out scores of residents in Palestinian communities in these areas, which Israel defines as firing zones.

Featured video

Khirbet Humsah, the Jordan Valley, living with no running water: Summer 2016

Kh. Humsah is one of dozens of small shepherding and farming communities scattered throughout the Jordan Valley. It is comprised of about 20 families and located northeast of the Hamra checkpoint. Like other communities in the Jordan Valley and throughout Area C, Kh. Humsah is not recognized by the Israeli authorities, which repeatedly demolish homes, prevent the community from connecting to the water network and work toward expelling its residents, who struggle to survive in the extreme heat of the Jordan Valley, making a meager living off farming and shepherding, while facing a constant water shortage. Dina and ‘Abdallah Abu Qabash, parents of four and residents of Kh. Humsah, speak about the difficulties of living with a water shortage, and harassment by the Israeli authorities.

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