Year: 2012

Kufr Qaddoum – Trend of Arrests Continue

14 October 2012 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank

Three people – one Palestinian man, another man from Jordan and one Israeli activist were arrested on Friday 12th October in the village of Kufr Qaddoum. Ahmad Badiya Amer, 21, from Jordan, was visiting his cousin, 28 year old Ahmad Abed Fatah Amer, who lives in Kufr Qaddoum. They were reportedly kidnapped from their home, during the regular Friday demonstration which they had not attended.

The Israeli activist was arrested during the demonstration, during a time of Israeli military invasion of the village – the soldiers made repeated incursions into the village in an attempt to arrest demonstrators. Two houses were invaded and occupied by the soldiers, providing a vantage point for them to attack locals. This prompted local youth to attempt to drive them out of the village by throwing stones.

An Israeli army bulldozer and skunk truck were driven further into the village than ever before in the history of the demonstration. After firing skunk water into civilian areas, the Israeli soldiers eventually retreated.

The occurrences of today continue a worrying trend of Palestinians arrested from their homes, facing accusations of having attended demonstrations. For example, Kufr Qaddoum villagers Majd and Abdelateef Obeid were arrested three weeks ago, from their home – where reportedly one of the men had been sleeping and the other had been eating lunch with his family.

The village of Kufr Qaddoum holds regular Friday demonstrations to protest the 12 year closure of the most direct road route to the nearest city of Nablus. This road is now only accessible for illegal Israeli settlers. The demonstration has now been going on for over a year and over 30 inhabitants of the village are currently still in Israeli custody, accused of attending demonstrations. Many of these people have been arrested in the night or from their homes. The status of those arrested today is currently unknown.

Sign the petition to free Majd and Abdelateef:

http://www.change.org/petitions/free-majd-and-abdelateef-obeid

 

By Ellie Marton (Ellie Marton is a volunteer with the International Solidarity Movement (name has been changed).

CALL TO ACTION — END THE JAMA’IN ROADBLOCKS – 16TH OCTOBER 2012

16TH OCTOBER 2012 – JAMA’IN VILLAGE – MORNING DEMONSTRATION

 

CONTACT 054 881 0651

 

The International Solidarity Movement (ISM) calls on pro-Palestinian and peace activists from across the Occupied Territories to join Palestinians on 16th October to protest the roadblock preventing access to Jama’in Village. On this day, residents of Jama’in will remove an earthen mound that blocks access to their agricultural lands.

 

Jama’in is close to the illegal Tappuah settlement in the West Bank. There, settlers armed with automatic rifles, large dogs and blunt instruments regularly attack Palestinian agricultural workers and landowners. January saw over 100 olive trees chopped down and burnt by settlers, and at least two cars belonging to Palestinians were destroyed on the highway close to the Huwwara military checkpoint.

 

Access to agricultural land and particularly olive trees is essential for Palestinian villagers. Approximately eighty percent of cultivated land in Palestine is planted with olive trees, and the harvest provides between twenty and fifty percent of a farming family’s annual income. Holding a deep significance in Palestinian culture and the economy of the region, the olive harvest has become a matter of survival for rural Palestinians. It is because of this that the Israeli government and armed residents of its illegal colonies in the West Bank are attempting to disrupt access to agricultural lands.

 

Extremist settlers have launched a campaign of ‘price-tag’ attacks against Palestinians and their property as collective punishment for perceived anti-settlement legislation and activity by the Israeli government.  The United Nations’ Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports that violent attacks by settlers against Palestinians increased by more than fifty percent in 2011.

 

With a year-old roadblock preventing residents’ access to their fields, the people of Jama’in village request international activists join them in protesting the real-life consequences of Israeli occupation.

Settlers Attack and Injure Palestinians Harvesting Olives in Tel Rumeida

12 October 2012 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank

In two separate incidents on Wednesday 10th and Friday 12th October 2012  settlers from the illegal settlement in Tel Rumeida, Hebron stole olives from two trees belonging to Jawad Abu Eisheh and attacked his family whilst they attempted to harvest from their land.

Between 2pm and 4pm on Wednesday 10th October 2012 settlers from the illegal settlement in Tel Rumeida stole olives from two trees nearby. The settlers carried out this theft in full view of the Israeli soldiers manning the Gilbert checkpoint only about ten meters away at the top of Tel Rumeida hill, who did nothing to stop them.

Video from Youth Against Settlements of the settlers stealing olives:
www.facebook.com/v/10151224631772220

On Thurday 11th October 2012 three International Solidarity Movement volunteers accompanied Jawad to his land to record any further criminal activity from the illegal settlement as Jawad and his family carried on harvesting their olive trees. Jawad has permission from the Civilian Military Commander, Rami Ferris, to harvest his olives at this time.

Jawad and the volunteers were stopped at the Gilbert checkpoint by an Israeli soldier who said that Jawad could not harvest any olives today and that no international volunteers could accompany him to his land. Jawad phoned the police and started to make a complaint. On seeing that he was not going to accept this arbitrary decision the soldier radioed to his commander. After talking on the radio the soldier relented and said he did have permission to harvest his olives after all.

The remainder of Thursday 11th October 2012 passed without incident as the Palestinians harvested their olives.


The Abu Eisheh family harvesting olives.

On Friday 12th October,  the Abu Eisheh family went to their land at 9.30am to begin to harvest. Shortly after, a soldier came over and told them to stop – Jawad informed him that he had been allowed by the commanding officer to harvest yesterday. No sooner that he had been stopped by the soldier, settlers began to appear from the illegal settlement nearby, “don’t harvest the olives, they are for us” they were heard shouting. At this point the soldiers told Jawad that he “must stop now there are settlers.” The family refused to stop as they had been allowed to harvest the previous day. Jawad told the soldiers “if I leave the settlers will steal my olives.”At this point a settler pushed over Jawad’s brother Wajdy, who fell to the ground, to which the soldiers did not respond.

The Israeli Army then attempted to arrest Yiyah Abu Eisheh (21) for refusing to leave the land, and as the soldiers grabbed him, Noor Abu Eisheh (27) got in the middle, so the soldiers bound both the men’s hands with cable ties and took them to the Gilbert checkpoint nearby.
At this point all the family was forcibly removed from their land by the army, and as they reached Gilbert Checkpoint there was around 30 settlers who started to attack the family and a number of Palestinian onlookers.

Settlers in Tel Rumeida who attacked the Abu Eisheh family.

Wajdy Abu Eisheh (25) was at this point injured by the settlers and needed medical attention. The army carried him into a vehicle which later transferred him into a Palestinian ambulance where he was taken to Al-Khalil Hospital.

An injured Wajdy Abu Eisheh being treated at the scene.

 

The Abu Eisheh family has suffered much from the illegal settlement in Tel Rumeida. Jawad used to run a brass mending and nickel, copper and zinc plating factory from his home employing twenty people. His factory amongst other work repaired parts for cars. The factory was closed by the Israeli Military along with other successful businesses in the area in the year 2000. His workshop has been broken into by settlers who destroyed chemicals and vandalized his electroplating equipment. The Jawad Abu Eisheh property had a wall to protect it from intrusion but after an illegal chicken farm was erected by the settlers next door they bit by bit broke down the wall by removing stones from it. About 18 months ago the settlers completely destroyed the wall which means that any time they want the settlers can come on to the property to vandalize or steal olives.

The Jawad Abu Eisheh family have lost their successful business because of the illegal settlement in Tel Rumeida and now they are losing the olives that grow on their land to thieves from the illegal settlement.

Jawad says:
“They don’t like to see Palestinians working their land.
How long must this family pay the cost of Israel’s Illegal settlement program?”


Team Khalil

al-Mufaqarah Resists


09 October 2012 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank

At one in the afternoon on Monday, the 8th of October, we received a call in Arabic:

“We have big problems. Can you come?”

Two calls later and we were on our way. We reached al-Tawani in a service taxi. Along with two volunteers from Operation Dove, we walked up the hill to al-Mufaqarah.

Al-Mufaqarah is a beautiful village with about a dozen families, some brick houses, some tents, and some prefabricated dwellings provided by the United Nations. On the hill in front of us we saw a series of entrances to caves with stone walls that complement the houses. They were once inhabited, but it seems that since the evacuation of the village in 1999 they have not been used.

As soon as it got dark, we realized that there is no electricity. We heard a generator supplying power for the evening, and we remember that just a year ago they were putting poles up with the purpose to bring electricity here from the grid. The army demolished these poles however, and now this village is again a target. This time, the occupation forces are setting their sites on the construction of a mosque and a school.

On Monday morning, a jeep from the Israeli occupation forces arrived with an order to stop any construction work. “We will check if you continue,” they said. “And we will proceed to arrest those responsible.”

When we arrived, we found a group assembled in a tent. The decisions about what actions to take had already been made, and now they explained their plan of action to the internationals that had been called to help.

The villagers explained that the Israeli laws are unjust. How is it possible that in the illegal settlements there are all facilities available: running water, light, schools, but the Palestinians are not permitted these services? How can they not even have their own place of worship?

“We do not accept Israeli law,” they said. “So tonight we will continue the work on the mosque.”

They would continue laying the concrete slabs on the construction site.

Meanwhile, they organized their efforts. Officially, when the army was there, all the equipment was removed from the construction site: the pile of rubble and cement was covered and hidden. But they also prepared two tractors with attached trailers that would move into the town from two different directions: one with a hoist and planks to walk on the slabs, the other with sand and a mixer. The tractors would converge at the construction site later.

We received information that there was a checkpoint at the exit of Yatta, but fortunately the tractors laden with the building materials were already on their way. The hoist was assembled and put into place, and we all took a quick pause for dinner. As we ate, a cold wind rose up and cleared the clouds of the day from the sky, giving way to a great starry sky. When it was dark, we started our work.

The sand and the mixer arrived, along with the building team from Yatta. Four people were there to load sand and gravel into the mixer. Another added water and put in the bags of cement. Another worker maneuvered the mixer and elevator, and four more worked to level the concrete.

Anytime we saw lights of a car passing on the road, the work slowed down and our lights for work were extinguished. Finally, the work was done without intervention from the army. By half past ten in the evening, everybody was enjoying tea.

Perhaps in the future, Israeli occupation forces will demolish the mosque; it has happened before in this village. But for now, al-Mufaraqah has a victory. The village shows great determination and will not give up!

Team Khalil