Khirbet al-Rakiz خِرْبِة ٱلرَّكِيز al-Rakeez | |
|---|---|
Village / hamlet | |
  Khirbet al-Rakiz Location within the West Bank, Palestine | |
| Coordinates:31°22′43″N35°07′06″E / 31.3786°N 35.1182°E /31.3786; 35.1182 | |
| State | Palestine |
| Governorate | Hebron Governorate |
| Area | Masafer Yatta |
| Elevation | 740 m (2,430 ft) |
| Population (2022–2025) | |
• Total | ~100–250 (est.) |
| Time zone | UTC+2 |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+3 |
Khirbet al-Rakiz (also:al‑Rakeez; Arabic:خِرْبِة ٱلرَّكِيز) is a smallPalestinian herding hamlet in theSouth Hebron Hills within theMasafer Yatta area of theHebron Governorate in the southernWest Bank. Like other Masafer Yatta communities, it is administered under Palestinian local frameworks yet lies inArea C under direct Israeli civil and military control. Since the 1970s much of Masafer Yatta has been designated asFiring Zone 918, with residents facing demolition orders, restrictions on infrastructure, and recurrent settler-related incidents.[1]
The broader Masafer Yatta region (Arabic:masāfer, “travelling”) historically functioned as a seasonal grazing landscape with cave dwellings adapted for semi‑sedentary life; many present‑day hamlets trace their families to nearbyYatta and other localities.[2][3] While specific archaeological surveys at al‑Rakiz are limited in published sources, the hamlet shares the region's pattern of caves, cisterns, terraces and small field plots characteristic of the South Hebron Hills.[1]
In December 2020, soldiers attempted to confiscate a generator belonging to a resident, Ashraf Amor. His friend, Harun Abu Aram, was shot in the neck while trying to prevent the seizure and was leftparalyzed. The case became emblematic of the ongoing military pressures on Masafer Yatta communities. Residents presented material artifacts such as old ovens, farming tools, and pottery to document their longstanding presence in the area when asked for proof by their lawyers in 2021.[4]
Following theJune 1967 war, Masafer Yatta came under Israeli occupation and was included inArea C. Large parts were declaredFiring Zone 918 for military training, restricting civilian building and service connections. In May 2022, theSupreme Court of Israel dismissed petitions by residents, paving the way for evictions across eight hamlets in the firing zone.[1][5] As in neighboring villages, residents of al‑Rakiz report chronic barriers to connecting to the electricity grid and water networks and rely on solar panels and water tankers.[6]
Al‑Rakiz is one of the smaller Masafer Yatta communities, with estimates typically in the low hundreds. Households practice mixed herding (goats and sheep), small‑plot dryland farming, and seasonal grazing. Water is primarily supplied by tanker and rain‑fed cisterns; electricity is commonly provided by solar units, with periodic confiscations and demolitions reported.[1][7]
On 1 January 2021, residentHarun (Haroun) Abu Aram was shot in the neck at close range during an Israeli operation to confiscate a generator in al‑Rakiz, leaving him paralyzed. He died of his wounds on 14 February 2023. He starred in the Oscar-winning documentaryNo Other Land.[8][9][10]
Additional incidents reported by human‑rights and humanitarian organizations include demolitions, tent seizures, vandalism of fences and trees, and grazing incursions by settlers in and around al‑Rakiz.[11][12][13][14][15][16]
| Shooting of Sa'id Muhammad Rabā‘ al-ʿAmūr | |
|---|---|
| Part ofIsraeli–Palestinian conflict | |
| Location | Khirbet al-Rakeez,Masafer Yatta, SouthHebron Hills,West Bank |
| Date | 17 April 2025 |
Attack type | Shooting |
| Weapons | Firearm |
| Victims | 1 wounded (Saʿīd Rabāʿ al-ʿAmūr) |
| Perpetrators | Israeli settler |
Theshooting of Saʿīd Muhammad Rabāʿ al-ʿAmūr (Arabic: سعيد محمد رباع العمور) occurred on 17 April 2025 in Khirbet al-Rakiz. According to human rights organizationB'Tselem and multiple Palestinian and regional news outlets, an armed Israeli settler—reportedly wearing anIDF uniform—shot al-ʿAmūr, aged 59, at point-blank range while he was on his land, seriously injuring him and leading to the amputation of his right leg.[17][18][19][20]
According toB'Tselem’s field investigation, four armed settlers—including the security officer the illegal nearby settlement ofAvigayil—entered the agricultural land of Saʿīd al-ʿAmūr near his home in Khirbet al-Rakeez, and began erecting poles and stretching wires through his property. When al-ʿAmūr approached them with his sons and demanded that they leave, one of the settlers attacked his 16-year-old son Ilyās, who was filming the incident on his phone. As al-ʿAmūr intervened to protect his son, the settlement guard fired two shots into the air before shooting al-ʿAmūr at point-blank range in the leg.[17]
Israeli soldiers arrived at the scene shortly after the shooting. Instead of detaining the assailant, they arrested the injured father and his son. Al-ʿAmūr was taken by an Israeli ambulance toSoroka Medical Center inBeersheba, where he underwent two surgeries; doctorsamputated his leg above the knee due to the severity of the wound.[17]
The following day, police interrogated al-ʿAmūr in hospital on the false charges of "assaulting soldiers." His son Ilyās, who had beendetained immediately after the incident, was interrogated at theKiryat Arba police station on allegations of attempting to seize a weapon, and was later transferred toOfer Prison. Both father and son were released on bail after a military court hearing on 20 April 2025.[17]
Eyewitness accounts collected by B'Tselem and local residents indicated that the shooter was wearing an Israeli army uniform and that settlers present had repeatedly threatened al-ʿAmūr in previous weeks, ordering him to leave his land.[18][19][20]
After being released from Israeli custody, al-ʿAmūr was transferred by a PalestinianRed Crescent ambulance to al-Ahli Hospital inHebron, where he remained under treatment.[17] His family reported ongoing trauma and fear of further attacks.
Human rights groups including B'Tselem and the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights denounced the attack as part of a broader pattern of settler violence against Palestinian residents in the South Hebron Hills under Israeli military protection.[17][19]
Media related toAl-Rakiz at Wikimedia Commons| Villages and hamlets |   | |
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| Incorporated villages | ||
| Related topics | ||