Armed settlers, shielded by soldiers, have taken over family land in Masafer Yatta, southern West Bank, erasing generations of heritage in a matter of days. The land, around 50 acres of farmland with more than 500 olive trees, grapevines and almond groves, belonged to Palestinian-American physician Nidal Jboor. His family watched as tents and pens were erected, livestock brought in, and possession gradually claimed, all under military protection. The takeover follows a long-standing pattern in which Palestinian land is quietly occupied, then retroactively legitimised by occupation authorities.

For Jboor, now based in the United States, the blow is not only legal but deeply personal. His parents, brothers and sisters remain on the ground, forced to witness strangers appropriating what they have cultivated for decades. “Every olive and grape tree is part of their lives,” he said, expressing both heartbreak and fear. With settlers heavily armed and the army on their side, families are left defenceless, unable to resist the slow erasure of their presence from the land.

This seizure comes amid decades of attempts to declare much of Masafer Yatta a military zone, forcing demolitions and displacement of Palestinian families. Activists and residents say the policy is less about training grounds and more about clearing the way for settlement expansion. The recent killing of teacher and activist Awdah Hathleen by a settler only miles away underscores the dangers families now face, fuelling anxiety that the same violence could strike Jboor’s own relatives.

Beyond the immediate fear lies a deeper wound: the deliberate targeting of land that embodies identity, memory and livelihood. Washington’s decision to arm Israel with thousands of new American-made rifles has heightened concerns that such weapons could be turned on Palestinian civilians by emboldened settlers. For families like the Jboors, the struggle is no longer just about legal rights but about survival, dignity, and the fight to remain rooted in the soil of their ancestors.