RAMALLAH: On Tuesday morning Israeli military forces demolished a mosque in the South Hebron Hills in the occupied West Bank, Ma'an News Agency reported. The mosque was located in Al-Mafqara, a small Palestinian village situated outside of Yatta. Villagers were prevented from removing anything from the mosque before bulldozers destroyed it, Ma'an added. The mosque was destroyed once before in 2011. The South Hebron Hills are home to several Palestinian villages that are regularly demolished by Israeli forces as well as frequently attacked by Israeli settlers. Susiya, a nearby village, has been destroyed entirely five times since 1985. The villagers are regularly attacked by Israeli settlers (from a neighboring settlement by the same name). During a visit to Susiya in October 2011, BikyaMasr.com staff spoke with a village leader about their situation. “We have been kicked off our land five times," he said. “We are not leaving again." The South Hebron Hills has become a focal point for Palestinian and international activists in recent years. Large demonstrations have drawn several European, Israeli and internationals to march in solidarity with locals who live in constant threat of expulsion and violent attacks by either military forces or West Bank settlers.
