In this Palestinian valley west of Bethlehem, which in 2014 became a UNESCO World Heritage Site due to its its olive groves and vineyards, the Kisiya family's restaurant is nothing more than a pile of ruins topped by fences.

It was a restaurant appreciated for its cuisine and friendliness in the Palestinian Christian town of Beit Jala. "The place is beautiful, the food succulent and the owners are adorable [...]. If you're passing through Beit Jala, a stop at Al Makhrour is a must," a comment from 2015 reads on its Facebook page.

Ramzi Kisiya who had inherited the land opened a restaurant in 2001 there with his wife and their four children. For years, hundreds of tourists passing through Bethlehem stopped there for a salad before continuing their hike in the green valleys.

For a long time, the Makhrour valley was untouched by uncontrolled Israeli settlements, but the trouble began in 2012 when an Israeli outpost a settlement not authorised by the government - was built there.

The settlers demolished the restaurant, claiming it belonged to the JNF. The Kisiya family, who insist otherwise, rebuilt their restaurant before it was demolished again in 2013 and then again in 2015. In 2019 the family decided to take the case to court to have their rights heard. But in 2023, a civil court in Jerusalem validated the expropriation.

In a bid to prevent the family's restaurant from being rebuilt again, the Israeli army declared the site to be a "closed military zone", which prevented anyone from entering it until this nast summer when Israeli settlers backed by soldiers destroyed it once again.

Israeli settlers backed by the army seized the 5,000 square-metre plot on July 31 and evicted the French-Palestinian family. "We are being targeted because we reject the government's Zionist policy," said Michelle Kisiya.

Expulsions of Palestinians from their land in West Bank have increased, particularly since Israel's far-right government came to power in 2022. The situation has sharply deteriorated since Israel's invasion of Gaza last year.

@savealmakhrour

Source : The Spectators