Some 2.5 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon vineyards belonging to Jewish farmers near the community of Esh Kodesh in Benjamin, 25 miles north of Jerusalem, were cut down and vandalized last Saturday by Arabs, whose footsteps lead to the nearby village of Qusra.
The mature vineyards, all bearing fruit, were scheduled for harvest in about two months, following which they would have been delivered to some of the best wineries in Israel.
Esh Kodesh residents issued a statement Wednesday, saying, “For over ten years now, every single year, Arabs come from the villages of the region and destroy our vineyards. To this day, not one Arab has been arrested for these acts.
“We, as an agricultural community, do not understand how one can even think of harming a tree, let alone a fruit bearing tree. We are convinced that only someone who is not connected to his own land would have the audacity to do such a thing,” the community statement continued.
“The damage caused is in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, both directly to the current yield and the fruit yields in the coming years,” the Esh Kodesh residents stated, noting that they are “already working on launching a mass mobilization campaign to rehabilitate the destruction.”
Click here to access the online crowdfunding effort for the farmer Zviki Struk whose vineyards were destroyed.