MASAFER YATA , Hebron - (Xinhua) A delegation of Western diplomatic mission heads in the West Bank and Jerusalem visited today, Thursday, the Masafer Yatta area, south of Hebron , where 8 residential communities are threatened with displacement from their lands.

The delegation's visit of solidarity with the residents in the gatherings came in the wake of the Israeli Supreme Court's approval last May of the army's recommendation to forcibly transfer 8 villages in Masafer Yatta, justifying that their residents "failed to prove" their claim that they were permanent residents there before declaring it a military training area for Saleh. Army.

Residents of Masafer Yatta say that the Israeli occupation authorities want to "evacuate and completely close the area and turn it into military training areas under the name of Shooting Range 918, not caring about the forced displacement of the population."

The diplomatic delegation included a number of representatives from Belgium, Denmark, the European Union, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom and Ireland.

The delegation toured several places in the threatened communities and met with Bedouin Palestinian families who live in them, in addition to seeing the damage that affected some homes as a result of the military exercises of the Israeli army.

The representative of the European Union in Palestine, Sven Kun von Burgsdorff, said during a press conference that the delegation's presence came in solidarity with the residents of Masafer Yatta who are threatened with displacement and forced transfer, and this demonstrates "our desire to direct international focus to what is happening here."

Burgsdorff stated that the Israeli Supreme Court made the decision ignoring that the Israeli occupying power has duties under international law, expressing his concern about this decision, which is a violation of international law.

Burgsdorf added that the occupying power, according to international law, has no right to expel and displace people for military reasons, stressing that there is no reason to displace people from the region and threaten economic life.

The representative of the European Union in Palestine called on the international community to take action to stop the expulsion of the population, build solar energy facilities and shelter for people, protect their basic rights, and provide education, food and water.

Burgsdorff explained that if the Israeli authorities displace the residents of Masafer Yatta, this will be "the largest forced transfer since 1999, and this is our great fear as we stand and fight to protect your basic human rights."

The visit of the European delegation was welcomed by officials and local residents.

Fouad Al-Amor, coordinator of the "Protection and Resilience Committees" in southern Hebron, told Xinhua that the presence of the European delegation strengthens the elements of resilience among the residents of Masafer Yatta, and it is a strong message to Israel that its procedures and practices are illegal.

Al-Amor stressed that the residents of Al-Musafer are determined to stay in their lands and homes, whatever the cost, and they will not leave them despite being shot at by the Israeli military exercises taking place in the area.

Al-Amor expressed his hope that the visit would constitute a safety valve for the Palestinian residents of Masafer Yatta and prevent their displacement from their lands at any moment, calling on the diplomatic delegation that is currently visiting Masafer Yatta to transfer the suffering of the residents to the decision-makers in their countries and pressure Israel to stop its military exercises.

The area witnesses protests almost daily by local residents and Israeli and foreign peace activists.

The area of the villages threatened with eviction is estimated at 30,000 dunums (1,000 square meters) and is inhabited by more than 2,000 people, including women and children.

Israel has classified approximately 38 population centers inhabited by more than 5,000 Palestinians as “firing” areas, which constitute 18% of the area of the West Bank, according to the United Nations Coordination Office in Palestine.