68 Year Old Man Arrested for ‘Trespassing’ on His Own Land

Sayah Al-Turi, the village leader of Al-Araqeeb. (Photo: File)

Sayah al-Turi village leader of Al-Araqeeb has been sentenced to ten months in jail, expulsion from his home and a fine.

Israeli forces tried to evict him several times since 1998, claiming his village is a state land, ignoring the fact that Al Turi’s family lived there for several generations.

The Magistrate’s Court in Beersheba in the Negev fined Sheikh Sayah Al-Turi $10,300 after finding him guilty in 18 cases filed in November 2013 including trespassing on state property, in reference to land which belongs to the village.

Al-Araqeeb has been demolished by Israeli authorities 122 times.

According to latest estimates, the families that live in makeshift huts and rely on rudimentary means to survive, are expected to pay a bill of two million shekels.

Al-Turi refused to be released on condition of exile from Al-Araqeeb.

His lawyers plan to appeal the verdict.

His lawyer, Shehdah Ibn Bari, told Arab48:

“We sense that the sentencing is connected to settlements and harassment, as the details of the sentencing stipulate that Sheikh Al-Turi evacuate his land without proving whether or not he owns the property. The essence of the sentencing provides for Al-Turi to leave his land and then fight for it from afar.”

Al-Araqeb is one of 35 “unrecognized” Bedouin villages. According to the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI), more than half of the approximately 160,000 Bedouins in the Negev reside in unrecognized villages.

The unrecognized Bedouin villages were established in the Negev soon after the 1948 Arab-Israeli war following the creation of the State of Israel.

(MEMO, PC, Social Media)

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1 Comment

  1. GOD is Love. The White Jews must learn GOD ways of Love. The whites think the World belong to them to Rule over. They are so Selfish and Hateful. The Planet belongs to GOD not them.

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