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Source: http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Op-EdContributors/Article.aspx?id=282825
Illegal Arab Building Defies Supreme Court Ruling
(Jerusalem Post) Ari Briggs - The illegal "building intifada" being waged by the Palestinian Authority on state lands in Area C of the West Bank has become the latest battleground. This unlawful land theft is being carried out with the full support of the EU, foreign aid organizations and the UN. The PA has sought to unilaterally extend its control over undeveloped land in an attempt to pre-empt the outcome of any negotiations, or to do away with the need for them completely. The claim of Arab shepherds from Yata in the South Hebron Hills, near the ancient Jewish town of Sussiya, has become a cause celebre of foreigners and locals wishing to harm Israel. In truth, they are squatters illegally trying to grab state lands. They all have permanent homes in Yata and are encouraged by the PA to grab land. The land has only served as grazing land and the caves found there are used as temporary dwellings by the shepherds for one month a year during the grazing season, as proven by aerial photo archives. The squatters falsely claim they have been forced to build illegally because of the limited number of building permits approved by the Civil Administration (CA). In fact, the CA has approved over 100 new town plans for Area C in the past 10 years, including Khirbet Tawani, only five km. north of Sussiya.