Red Cross provides assistance to farmers blocked from their land for four years

20 January 2007

The International Red Cross is assisting northwestern West Bank farmers affected by the Wall. The project aiming to enable farmers to cultivate their agricultural lands in the Tulkarem District's towns and suburbs benefited some 90 farmers thus far during its three month run.

The Director of the Red Cross Tulkarem office, Milani Tremblay, said that for four years farmers have been unable to access their lands freely due to Wall activity. The program's beneficiaries are being provided the necessary support through the provision of infrastructure for land cultivation to begin farming again.

As for the possibility of continuing such projects, Tremblay said that the Red Cross sees a need and it must be seriously considered.

Head of the Tulkarem group of Palestinian Farmers in the People's Committee, Suheil Salman, said that “to face the affects of the Wall such assistance would enable farmers to remain in our homeland, particularly after the devastation suffered since the beginning of the Intifada, the Wall construction at the expense of agricultural land, and the destruction of fields and infrastructure by bulldozing and uprooting trees and crops.”

Salman continued to say that “more support is needed to continue the efforts begun thus far and in order to keep the land by working it.”

Farmer Fayez Al Tanib thanked the International Red Cross for helping the Palestinian farmers, stressing the need or such assistance. He added that over the past years they have been deprived of access to their lands which has “enabled the Israelis to destroy the infrastructure by building the Wall at the expense of Palestinian land.”

Al Tanib directed his words to the issues several greenhouses which Israeli forces destroyed when the Wall was built and the chemical factories west of Tulkarem. He called on international institutions to contribute to support Palestinian farms by all means available, including enabling them to market their produce or sell to foreign markets.

Bassam Hassan Isa from the Tulkarem suburb of Irtah operates an artesian well in the region that farmers have been unable to work and said he hoped that such assistance will “continue to support the vital and important sector of farming.”

Farmer Mousa says that part of the Red Cross assistance was in agricultural fertilizers, “a high need at this point,” he said. He called for continued support in light of the poor conditions of farmers so that they may be able to remain on their land and cultivate it. He said that farmers incur some of the highest losses, particularly those whose farms are now near the Wall due to the high production costs.

Another farmer said he and his family left the land two years ago and tried later to resume agricultural work, but could not due to lack of financial resources. “The Red Cross provided farmers access to the land and the ability to freely farm.”

Several officials from the International Red Cross in Tulkarem toured the region with the farmers who have benefited from the program, listening to the needs of the people in Tulkarem and its environs. Each farmer was screened and cross referenced by the Red Cross, the Ministry of Agricultural and the Association of Palestinian Farmers. All requests were studied by the three agencies in order to prevent duplicating services.

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