'Palestinians scared off land' by Jewish settlers

Jewish settlers have seized thousands of acres of West Bank land by widening their communities’ perimeter fences or scaring Palestinian farmers off their fields through harassment, an Israeli human rights group said today.

The report said 11 West Bank settlements more than doubled the area under their control and seized an additional 1,100 acres, half of it owned by Palestinians, by extending fences with government backing since 2002.

The report by B’Tselem said other settlements have gradually taken control of thousands of acres since the 1970s by building extended fences without permission or by expelling Palestinians from areas near settlements.