Palestinian families ordered to leave homes in Jordan valley

The Israeli authorities on Tuesday ordered four Palestinian families to leave their homes in Wadi al-Maleh area in the northern part of the occupied Jordan Valley as a prelude to evacuate the area from its Palestinian residents, according to a local official. Aref Daraghme, head of Wadi al-Maleh village council, said the Israeli authorities gave the families, which live in one section of the village, 24 hours to leave their homes and move somewhere else. He said the Israeli authorities had previously demolished a large number of Palestinian houses in the same area and prevented residents from working on their land. All of this is done for the benefit of illegal settlements in the Jordan valley, he said, according to the official Palestinian news agency (WAFA). Also on Tuesday, the Israeli military ordered a large number of Palestinian families to leave their homes in the Jordan Valley for a couple of days as the army prepares to carry out military maneuvers in the area.