Palestinian residents in the village of Jalud are facing an escalation in home seizures as settlers occupy a property under construction, while in al-Eizariya, the Waldorf-inspired House of Hope school struggles to maintain a space for children amid the deepening trauma of the ongoing conflict in the West Bank.
Settler Seizure of Property in Jalud
The security situation in the West Bank has taken a sharp turn for residents of Jalud, where a Palestinian family’s dream of building a home has been forcibly interrupted. Mohammad Salameh, who was overseeing the construction of a two-story house intended for his recently engaged son, reported that a group of Israeli settlers seized the property earlier this week. The incident, captured in video footage verified by Reuters, shows at least six settlers moving across the roof of the structure.
Local leadership describes this as a troubling expansion of settler activity. Raed al-Haj Mohammad, head of the Jalud village council, noted that the settlers have moved to within 100 meters of the last house in Jalud, which is also currently under construction. Residents fear this is part of a broader pattern of land appropriation. Only God knows, if there is law and order then they will leave,
Salameh said. If they succeeded with taking one, then the rest will follow.
The Israeli military confirmed receiving a report about the house, stating that soldiers arrived to the area and quickly acted to disperse the gathering.
However, the military did not address the settlers’ ongoing presence at the site, instead directing inquiries regarding law enforcement to the Israel Police, which did not provide a comment to reporters.
Waldorf Education Amid Occupation
While families in Jalud confront immediate displacement, educators elsewhere in the West Bank are attempting to mitigate the long-term psychological impact of the conflict on Palestinian children. Manar Wahhab and her husband, Milad Vosgueritchian, founded the House of Hope Vision Kindergarten & School in al-Eizariya, which utilizes the Waldorf philosophy to provide students with a space for emotional expression.
The school is the subject of a new documentary, House of Hope, directed by Marjolein Busstra, who spent three years filming the daily lives of the founders and their students. For Wahhab, the school serves as a form of non-violent resistance. The school protects the children’s dignity in the present moment,
Busstra said. It’s more about refusing to let occupation shape their inner world, so that they can actually be children and have agency.
The Weight of Conflict on Daily Life
The documentary captures the stark reality of life under occupation, particularly following the events of October 7, 2023. Busstra observed that while the core mission of the film remained consistent, the atmosphere within the school and the lives of the founders became significantly heavier as the regional violence intensified.
“The story I wanted to create with Manar stayed the same, but after October 7, everything became heavier. They were so down for a while. They were like different people, like they lost all hope.”
Marjolein Busstra, Director
Wahhab acknowledged the difficulty of allowing a film crew to document her most vulnerable moments. She emphasized that she felt a responsibility to represent not just herself, but the broader community’s struggle for peace and existence. I think hope is a difficult word at the moment, but I have a deep awe for Manar, who keeps creating and teaching even while carrying so much herself,
Busstra added.
Regional Stakes and Settlement Expansion
The events in Jalud and the daily operation of institutions like House of Hope exist against a backdrop of increasing volatility in the West Bank. According to a recent U.N. inquiry, attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinian villages and agricultural land have surged by 130% since 2023. This rise in violence coincides with an acceleration of settlement expansion under the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which maintains a parliamentary majority through alliances with hardline pro-settlement factions.
For individuals like Salameh, whose family finances were already strained by the inability to find work following the outbreak of the Gaza war, the loss of property represents a profound blow. The neighbour close by has built a two-story house, which they will probably take too, if we lose this house (his) they will lose theirs,
he said. The intersection of land disputes and the struggle to maintain daily normalcy continues to define the landscape for Palestinians in the occupied territory.
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