[Jayyous, Qalqilia]

Today, at 10:30 AM, Zarriffi, the mother and wife of the Abu Amar
family reported that the Isreali army ordered them out of their
home. The family was told that they must have a permit to live in
their home because their home "is now located in Israel." After
several hours of work with a human rights organzaition, the family
was granted access back to their home.

The family home of Abu Amar is located on the outside of the Israeli
Apartheid Wall, opposite the village of Jayyous. They are the only
family isolated from daily life there. The family attempts to pass
daily through a gate in the Wall controlled by Israeli soldiers, but
they are often harassed and denied passage.

This is not the first time the Abu Amar family has faced such
circumstances. Beginning on September 1, 2003, after the completion
of the Wall, the Israeli army began to sporadically open the gate
for the children so that they could attend school in their village.
In order to survive, the family has received shipments of food and
water sent over the Wall from the people of Jayyous.

The gate the Abu Amar family passes through, the "south gate,"
intersects what has historically been a road to land for some 25
farmers to access approximately 700 dunams of land on this side of
the village. On November 23, 2003, the Israeli army announced this
gate closed permanently for anyone except the family of Abu Amar.

The Israeli soldiers gave no reason for the family needing to leave
other than to say that this was Israel and they did not have
permission to live there because they never had a permit to build
their home ten years ago.

This family is in grave danger of losing their home and everything
in it. While there have been no orders for demolition, it is clear
that the intent of the Israeli army is to push the family out of
their home.

Please take action and demand that the family be allowed to stay in
their home without daily harassment from Israeli soldiers! Please
support the Abu Amar family and all the people of Jayyous in their
struggle to access their land and live freely!

For further information, please contact:

Tracie (English): 065.203.543
Mustafa (Arabic): 055.817.722

END

For activists wanting to mobilize support for the village of Jayyous
and protest the continued harassment of the Abu Amar family and all
the villagers, the following contact information can be used:

DCO in Qalqilia region
Phone: +972 (0)97 922 234 / +972 (0)97 759 219

DCO Humanitarian Office:
+972 (0)2 997 7733

DCO Spokesperson:
+972 (0)56 234 081

IDF Spokesperson for Foreign Press:
+972 (0)2 569 4454