In the early morning hours of Yom Kippur, when all was still and appeared serene in the Jordan Valley, Arab terrorists moved stealthily in the darkness to attack their nearby Jewish neighbors.
At 1:30 am, the agricultural produce grown and stored by the Dor family in the religious Moshav Mehola went up in flames.
יום כיפור 01:30 לפנות בוקר, מפעל חייהם של החקלאים, בני משפחת דור במושב מחולה עולה באש. עקבות המציתים מובילות לכפר עין אל בידה. עם צאת הצום, תכננו בני משק דור (מותג 'האדמה הטובה') להוציא לשיווק את התוצרת החקלאית, ירקות ועשבי תיבול אורגניים, אך עמל של חודשים ארוכים אבד כעת pic.twitter.com/UqHorhIgSn
— יאיר קראוס (@yair_kraus) October 5, 2022
All of the produce, vegetables and organic herbs lovingly cultivated over long summer months by the farmers of Meshek Dor, was lost.
But the arsonists didn’t leave it at the produce. They also torched the farmers’ expensive agricultural tools and equipment — the life’s work of the family — was completely destroyed in the arson.
The tracks of the arson terrorists led to the nearby Palestinian Authority Arab village of Ein El Beida.
Eleven fire crews worked on the night of Yom Kippur to fight the blaze, focusing mainly on the central building that was used to store goods before marketing.
Most of the firefighting efforts were to contain the fire so that it would not spread to nearby buildings and greenhouses.
The Fire Department stated that according to preliminary findings, there is “reasonable suspicion of deliberate arson,” and a special investigation team was established to investigate the incident.
Security cameras recorded two masked men setting fire to the place.
“Another very painful incident of agricultural terrorism, another family whose world has been destroyed, and on Yom Kippur. How much cruelty and evil can one absorb?!” said David Alhiani, head of the Jordan Valley Regional Council.
He called on the security forces and the government “to deal seriously and truthfully with the phenomenon of agricultural terrorism that we are experiencing here from our neighbors. This time it ended up with loss of property worth millions, but unfortunately, we won’t be surprised if one morning we wake up to an event that may also cost human lives,” Alhiani warned.
ההערכה היא כי מוקד ההצתה במשק דור שבמושב מחולה יבער לפחות עוד 3 ימים. הנזק הוא מיליוני שקלים. כלל התוצרת החקלאית המאופסנת, כלים חקלאיים וציוד שלא נותר מהם דבר. בארגון השומר החדש אומרים: "אנו נערכים לסיוע למשק ככל שיידרש באירוע הקשה הזה". pic.twitter.com/Jgsj2W51Cc
— יאיר קראוס (@yair_kraus) October 5, 2022
The damage is estimated at millions of shekels, encompassing all the stored agricultural produce, agricultural tools and equipment of which there is nothing left.
Surprisingly, desperately needed assistance may be coming from an unexpected quarter: “We are preparing to assist… as much as is required in this difficult event,” the left-wing Ha’shomer Ha’chadash promised, according to Makor Rishon journalist Yair Kraus.
But this is not the first such arson attack on Jewish farmers and their fields. Israeli vineyards and fields in Judea and Samaria have been targeted for years, repeatedly, by Arab arson.
Arab terrorists caused significant damage to the orchards of Kfar Etzion on Saturday night after they hurled burning tires and firebombs into the community’s agricultural areas.
Footprints of five terrorists found at the scene of the attack led to the nearby Arab village of Safa.
A similar incident occurred on Saturday afternoon when Arab rioters from the village of Jania set a tire on fire and caused a massive blaze. The fire spread between the Israeli communities of Talmon and Dolev. Large firefighting teams with the help of planes fought the flames and prevented the spread of the fire toward the homes.
The road connecting the two communities was damaged and the forest in the area was also damaged.
Earlier this year, in May, Arab arsonists set fire to Jewish-owned pastures near the Malachei Ha’Shalom farm in Gush Shilo.
TPS contributed to this report.
