Soldiers, Anguish Remain Around Evacuated West Bank Settlements

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by Jon Elmer
August 26, 2005
The New Standard

Jenin, West Bank, Aug 26 - Standing in her barnyard amid the chickens and cows, corn stalks and wheat, Sarah Hassan's optimism is guarded, her memories searing as she looks out at the Jewish settlement of Kadim.
Her farm, in the village of Arab As-Suweitat, is the closest Palestinian land to the settlement of Kadim, one of four Jewish enclaves recently evacuated under Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's "disengagement" plan. Established in 1983, along with the nearby settlement of Ganim, Kadim until recently hosted a civilian population of about 150.

According to all accounts, by the time The NewStandard visited Suweitat, the settlers had already abandoned Kadim in compliance with the quieter West Bank portion of Ariel Sharon's Gaza "disengagement" plan. But memories of the impact that their 22-year residence in Palestinian territory had on the local population will linger, as will the heavily armed presence of Israel Defense Forces (IDF) troops, maintaining effective rule over the area's Palestinian population.

"We have to be honest – we are steadfast, but we have suffered greatly," Hassan said between long and thoughtful pauses. Hassan said she has been living and farming this land since 1948, when her family, like many presently in the Jenin area, fled their homes and villages around the coastal city of Haifa in what is now Israel.

http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=107&ItemID=8589