Umm Al Kheir is a small Palestinian village in the southern West Bank, in the area known as Masafer Yatta. The villagers bought the land after the foundation of the State of Israel. In the early 1980s the Israeli settlement (illegal under international law) of Carmel was built cheek by jowl.
Over the years the villagers have been subject to repeated house demolitions, and are denied access by the Israeli authorities to mains water or electricity. Since October 2023, though, things have got much worse: further demolitions, settler violence (including denying the villagers and their flocks access to their grazing land), and wanton emptying of water pipes.
Hebron International Resource Network (HIRN) has been supporting the villagers for a number of years. Their founder (whom The Friends were pleased to host at a meeting in Dunblane last year) told Muriel Pearson last month: ‘The settlers and army are working hand in hand in order to put as much pressure as possible on the community.’
The Church of Scotland and The Friends have had links with the village over a number of years. A number of Church of Scotland groups have visited and been warmly welcomed. The Scots Hotel has donated some much-needed furniture, and The Friends made a donation to cover the cost of transport. Another donation from The Friends bought furniture for the community’s activity programme for children.
But now the need is even more basic: for food. Last month, when Muriel visited the village, she passed on from the church funds to the village to help in a small way to address the villagers’ current food insecurity, especially during the holy month of Ramadan. We were delighted that a donation from The Friends made this possible.
Here is what HIRN’s founder told Muriel: ‘One of the best ways we can show solidarity with the community during Ramadan is to have Iftar meals and perhaps distribute food parcels as well.’ He said that HIRN had been at a loss as to how to fund this but that The Friends’ donation would make it possible. He expressed his appreciation of not just the food that would be provided but also the solidarity that it represented at this very difficult time.
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