[News] Israeli Settler Company Specializing in West Bank Outposts Now at Work in Northern Gaza
Anti-Imperialist News
news at freedomarchives.org
Mon Dec 2 11:47:33 EST 2024
A prominent Israeli settler offered me $165 per day to demolish homes in
Beit Lahia
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for more
REVEALED: Israeli Settler Company Specializing in West Bank Outposts
Now at Work in Northern Gaza
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A prominent Israeli settler offered me $165 per day to demolish
homes in Beit Lahia
Younis Tirawi <https://substack.com/@ytirawi>
Dec 2, 2024
∙
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/Bulldozers belonging to the Israeli Libi Construction Company in Beit
Lahia, Nov 30, 2024/
Israeli Settler Company Specializing in West Bank Outposts Now at
Work in Northern Gaza
By Younis Tirawi
On November 28, Israeli Housing and Construction Minister Yitzhak
Goldknopf visited the border of Gaza, accompanied by Daniella Weiss, the
godmother of the Zionist settler movement, with the explicit goal of
«scouting» sites for resettlement. Goldknopf posted a photo gazing
through binoculars at the area. “Today I toured the Gaza Strip
settlements,” Goldknopf tweeted, framing the expedition as retaliation
for the ICC arrest warrants against Benjamin Netanyahu and former
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. “Jewish settlement here is the answer to
the terrible massacre and the answer to the International Criminal Court
in The Hague who, instead of caring for the 101 hostages, chose to issue
arrest warrants against the prime minister and the minister of defense.”
“The tour that took place today included a visit to several significant
points of view, at the entrance to Tzir Netazir [the Netzarim corridor]
- to understand the decisive importance of the place and its immediate
readiness for Jewish settlement,” a post
<https://substack.com/redirect/54fdce92-b587-40ad-9741-c597e35f3563?j=eyJ1IjoibHZwcGIifQ.9RIwWbE6EVIB7Jy8lfazxZKfps8R18neRGMKwOiqnRM>by
Weiss’s Nachala Settler Movement detailed. Israel has conducted
extensive demolitions in the Netzarim corridor
<https://substack.com/redirect/b24b650a-718f-4d94-810e-2dae6804929c?j=eyJ1IjoibHZwcGIifQ.9RIwWbE6EVIB7Jy8lfazxZKfps8R18neRGMKwOiqnRM>that
divides northern and central Gaza as the Israeli army works day and
night to ethnically cleanse the Palestinians of northern Gaza. “The
minister expressed his great appreciation for the dedication and joy of
all partners and promised support and help as much as he can for the
Jewish settlement in Gaza!”
<https://substack.com/redirect/11f53f2b-71bf-4b8b-986d-d2cf65e38b04?j=eyJ1IjoibHZwcGIifQ.9RIwWbE6EVIB7Jy8lfazxZKfps8R18neRGMKwOiqnRM>
Facebook post by Nachala Movement.
In addition to the Israeli military conducting extensive demolitions,
Drop Site News has uncovered that Israel has now contracted private
companies specializing in settler construction to work in northern Gaza.
One construction company confirmed it is hiring for operations in Beit
Lahia, a town adjacent to the northern border of Gaza. This is the first
time a private company has been documented working in the north.
The use of private contractors to conduct demolitions has been
documented previously
<https://substack.com/redirect/2441be29-a920-44f9-a894-acda5136a5e1?j=eyJ1IjoibHZwcGIifQ.9RIwWbE6EVIB7Jy8lfazxZKfps8R18neRGMKwOiqnRM>in
Rafah by the company Meshek Afar. And the Asia Construction Company
claims
<https://substack.com/redirect/8e39d06a-aab8-4509-b3bb-d3dda1312f91?j=eyJ1IjoibHZwcGIifQ.9RIwWbE6EVIB7Jy8lfazxZKfps8R18neRGMKwOiqnRM>to
have worked on the Gaza pier, and on the road along the Philadelphi
Corridor. In May, a construction worker, Liron Yitzhak, was killed in
southern Gaza while doing work for an unnamed company.
A job advertisement from Libi Construction and Infrastructure Ltd.—a
settlement construction company registered in the illegal outpost of
Shiloh near Ramallah—recently posted in a Facebook group named
“reservists” to conduct demolitions in Gaza. But the use of private
contractors enables civilian workers, not just Israeli reservists, to
enter Gaza.//“Looking for bulldozer operators for demolition work in
Gaza,” the job description reads, “The job is also relevant for those
who have not served in the army. Good pay.”
<https://substack.com/redirect/08568816-3e0b-4341-81d0-6a15dfb9bb7c?j=eyJ1IjoibHZwcGIifQ.9RIwWbE6EVIB7Jy8lfazxZKfps8R18neRGMKwOiqnRM>
Libi Construction specializes in the building of settlement outposts
throughout the occupied West Bank, especially in the northern parts and
the Jordan Valley. In the past months alone, the company built dozens of
settlements in the areas of Nablus
<https://substack.com/redirect/9f64fd08-84b4-48f6-925a-309cd76f56b4?j=eyJ1IjoibHZwcGIifQ.9RIwWbE6EVIB7Jy8lfazxZKfps8R18neRGMKwOiqnRM>and
Selfit
<https://substack.com/redirect/62a0ea8f-f15b-4c1a-973e-77565099ab32?j=eyJ1IjoibHZwcGIifQ.9RIwWbE6EVIB7Jy8lfazxZKfps8R18neRGMKwOiqnRM>in
the West Bank. According to its website it “specializes in the
construction of prefabricated buildings of all types – for residential,
institutional, and public use. Everything is on us. All that's left is
to populate the houses.” Notably, though the job posting is for
demolition work, Libi construction group doesn’t offer demolition on its
web page, and is highly specialized in settlement activity and rapid
settlement construction.
The posting comes as Israel is annihilating northern Gaza. “Israel is
carrying out ethnic cleansing in northern Gaza. There is no Beit Lahia,
no Beit Hanoun,” former Israeli military chief of staff and defense
minister Moshe Ya’alon said in widely publicized, critical marks on
November 30. Ya’alon has previously boasted about destroying thousands
of residential units in Gaza who now finds himself in opposition to the
government. “They are currently operating in Jabalia and clearing the
area of Arabs.”
Libi Construction and Infrastructure Ltd. and Harel Libi
The job posting on Facebook was a screenshot of a WhatsApp story of a
man named Harel Libi, officially registered as an administrator of the
company. I approached Libi directly to inquire about the job, and he
confirmed the company employs civilians in addition to members of the
Israeli military. The only question Libi had was whether I had any
experience, to which I said yes.
He told me that he was in Gaza, but would send us all the relevant
papers and documentation when he returned to Israel. We agreed that the
work would begin within a few days.
Based on my conversations with Libi, the payment terms for the work are
set at a daily rate of 600 Israeli shekels (approximately $165/day),
with the work schedule running from 5:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., five days a
week, in Beit Lahia. The work is set to begin as early as next week.
Libi made it clear that individuals working on the project are not
permitted to leave the area without a military escort. He also noted
that the project duration is undefined, with no specific end date for
the contract.
The day after I first got in touch, Libi sent me a document to complete
in order to proceed. The document does not mention “Gaza” but asked me
to acknowledge that the work will be done outside the Israeli border.
<https://substack.com/redirect/d24fbeb5-e969-47dc-a45e-8b63bd87805c?j=eyJ1IjoibHZwcGIifQ.9RIwWbE6EVIB7Jy8lfazxZKfps8R18neRGMKwOiqnRM>
The key terms for participating as a civilian in operations beyond
Israel’s borders included:
*
Article 2: The individual acknowledges that he has received safety
and security instructions associated with performing duties outside
the borders.
*
Article 3: The individual was offered the option to fulfill their
obligations as part of the military reserves but chose to perform
the assigned work as a civilian.
*
Article 6: In the event of death during these operations, the
individual will be recognized as a “victim of hostile acts” rather
than as a “fallen soldier.”
Our work manager would be Aviad Cohen and all equipment and vehicles
used for the operation would belong to the company. Cohen and his phone
number also appear in a job advertisement for building in the occupied
West Bank by the Libi Construction Group.
Libi Construction is owned by several settlers that have been widely
documented by numerous Israeli NGOs and monitoring groups with a long
record of attacks on Palestinian communities in the occupied West Bank.
According to Kerem /Navot/(/Naboth's/Vineyard), an Israeli NGO which
monitors and carries out research on Israeli land policy in the occupied
West Bank, the company built the settlement of “Adei Ad” and has earned
a notorious reputation for being one of the most violent and brutal
outposts in the occupied West Bank.
<https://substack.com/redirect/ab165c70-085c-4551-a3f0-c3d4f80adf91?j=eyJ1IjoibHZwcGIifQ.9RIwWbE6EVIB7Jy8lfazxZKfps8R18neRGMKwOiqnRM>
Official website of Libi Construction Company.
And, according to Israeli researcher Dror Etkes
<https://substack.com/redirect/4a007746-36a4-4008-82c4-2b46b269635e?j=eyJ1IjoibHZwcGIifQ.9RIwWbE6EVIB7Jy8lfazxZKfps8R18neRGMKwOiqnRM>,
founder of Kerem Navot, the company has close connections to Amana, a
settler organization currently under U.S. sanctions, and the settlement
council in the West Bank.
The group has been working at an accelerating pace in the past months to
build settlements in the West Bank. A Facebook
<https://substack.com/redirect/a9f4747c-c6fe-4961-b0aa-1f5ddada65a4?j=eyJ1IjoibHZwcGIifQ.9RIwWbE6EVIB7Jy8lfazxZKfps8R18neRGMKwOiqnRM>post
from September mentioned the involvement of the Libi company in the
construction of a 62-unit neighborhood in the settlement of Itamar,
located near Nablus in the West Bank. In July, a settler tagged
<https://substack.com/redirect/129588e8-92d0-4888-ba8b-bc233d76d3cd?j=eyJ1IjoibHZwcGIifQ.9RIwWbE6EVIB7Jy8lfazxZKfps8R18neRGMKwOiqnRM>the
Libi company thanking them for its role in building a new settlement
compound in the illegal outpost of Revava, located in the Palestinian
city of Salfit, also in the West Bank.
Libi has a long history that includes several run-ins with the "rule of
law." In an article from the Israeli newspaper Haaretz
<https://substack.com/redirect/bbb8aa5b-c577-456b-81bd-765369e9fde1?j=eyJ1IjoibHZwcGIifQ.9RIwWbE6EVIB7Jy8lfazxZKfps8R18neRGMKwOiqnRM>from
2012, Harel Libi appears as one of the 12 settlers given removal orders
from the West Bank for being involved in attacks against Palestinian
residents and Israeli military in the West Bank. Another one of the 12,
Zvi Sukkot, is now a member of the Knesset.
Harel is regarded as among the most violent settlers in the West Bank.
Libi founded the outpost of Marom Shmuel on the lands of several
villages including Beit Dajan and runs a farm there. A September
<https://substack.com/redirect/0d6df0a1-cf94-41c0-a502-9f50176fa004?j=eyJ1IjoibHZwcGIifQ.9RIwWbE6EVIB7Jy8lfazxZKfps8R18neRGMKwOiqnRM>article
in the Israeli newspaper Zman Israel, written by Omer Sharvit, details
the close relationship between Harel Libi—nicknamed “Coco”—and Moshe
Sharvit, a settler sanctioned by the EU, U.S., and UK for his actions.
The piece includes testimonies from Palestinian farmers describing how
Sharvit, under U.S. sanctions, collaborated with Libi in carrying out
attacks on Palestinian farmers in the Jordan Valley. In one incident, a
resident of Hamra in the Jordan Valley reported that settlers from
Libi’s farm burned his property.
"Moshe Sharvit arrived here with an ATV, drove around the residential
area, cursed, and was armed,” one farmer Abu Seif told Zman about an
encounter on August 24, 2023. “He called his friend Coco to come. In
total, there were five or six of them, and they opened the taps of two
water tanks."
In an article from last year, Israeli right-wing newspaper Makor Rishon
<https://substack.com/redirect/b1872410-ba7b-445d-b3dc-35f84b64ff36?j=eyJ1IjoibHZwcGIifQ.9RIwWbE6EVIB7Jy8lfazxZKfps8R18neRGMKwOiqnRM>details
the efforts of Harel Libi and his wife Talia in a lengthy interview. His
wife told the newspaper how she and her husband dedicated themselves to
establishing as many settlements as possible. They moved frequently,
even setting up illegal outposts under Israeli law, with the goal of
settling as much land as they could and taking territory from Palestinians.
In a 2022 YouTube interview on the channel Ezri ToBe, also published by
the right-wing newspaper Arutz Sheva, Israel channel 7, Ezri visits
<https://substack.com/redirect/ca0bf62b-e044-4ee6-b681-6823619ee5f6?j=eyJ1IjoibHZwcGIifQ.9RIwWbE6EVIB7Jy8lfazxZKfps8R18neRGMKwOiqnRM>the
illegal outpost of Marom Shmuel. Libi acknowledges that the land isn’t
theirs—and claims they are simply holding it until other settlers
arrive: “We haven’t come here to seize land. We don’t seize land. It’s
not our land—not ours, not any other farm’s. We’re safeguarding the
land. That’s a big difference. At the end of the day, the land isn’t ours”
The interviewer concludes by asking Libi where they plan to move next.
Smiling, Libi responds, “We’re not going to reveal all the secrets.”
<https://substack.com/profile/243364266-younis-tirawi>
A guest post by
Younis Tirawi
<https://substack.com/@ytirawi?utm_campaign=guest_post_bio&utm_medium=email>
A Palestinian journalist covering politics and security in the Occupied
Palestinian Territories, primarily sharing updates on X
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