Hamas leader Mahmoud Mardawi affirmed that the Israeli enemy’s move to displace 15 new Palestinian families from the Shalal al-Auja (community) north of the city of Ariha—following the previous displacement of 94 families from the same area—constitutes a systematic uprooting operation aimed at emptying the land of its original inhabitants, and represents a fully-fledged crime of forced displacement being committed in full view and hearing of the world.

In a press statement on Saturday, Mardawi warned of the danger of the policies pursued by the enemy across various governorates of the West Bank, including pressure, intimidation, confiscation, and home demolitions, in addition to repeated attacks and the establishment of new settlement outposts, as part of imposing a fait accompli policy.

He stressed that international silence regarding the displacement of the Shalal al-Auja community today opens the door to the future uprooting of other Palestinian communities, affirming that the occupation plan is not limited to this community alone, but rather targets the entire Palestinian presence in the Jordan Valley and throughout the West Bank.

Mardawi called for strengthening on-the-ground resistance actions and intensifying popular support, urging the international community to take immediate and serious action to stop these violations, impose deterrent sanctions on the enemy, and work to halt settlement expansion by all available means.