5th March 2013 | International Solidarity Movement, Hebron, Occupied Palestine
22 year old Ibrahim Saadi is still being held at Ofer Prison in Ramallah after being shot in the head close range by a rubber bullet and arrested during a peaceful demonstration in Hebron on Friday.
His brother told us he had recieved a number of stitches on his head before being transferred to Ofer.
Ibrahim Saadi with wounds to head being dragged down street by soldiers
The peaceful protest organised in remembrance of the Abraham mosque massacre in 1994 was broken up by tear gas and stun grenades in Hebron on Friday. Many parts of Hebron have been shut off to palestinians since the massacre, including Shuhada Street which was once a busy commercial area.
The demonstration was organised by Hebron Defence League and was attended by Palestinian, Israeli and International activists who sat down on the road close to the gate which blocks access to Shuhada street. Soldiers threw tear gas canisters and sound grenades at the demonstrators causing many to disperse.
When the remaining demonstrators regrouped, they were prevented from moving anywhere else by a line of soldiers. Soldiers attempted to take the megaphone of one activist but was blocked by both Israeli and International activists.
Not long after the demonstration ended , 22 year old Ibrahim Sa`adi was dragged unconscious down the street by a group of soldiers with his face covered in blood. According to several eyewitnesses including his brother, Ibrahim was shot at close range with a rubber bullet. His eight year old sister saw the entire scene and was left in shock.
After the news of Sa`adi`s arrest spread , clashes erupted around bab al zawiya area of Hebron. Dozens of demonstrators were injured , including one international, as the army fired rubber coated steel bullets, tear gas, stun grenades and live ammunition. The clashes continued until after sunset.Israeli Occupation Forces stand in between peaceful demonstrators
Earlier that morning 19 year old Abdel Basset was arrested by soldiers in Tel Rumeida A witness who filmed the arrest was made to delete the video by the soldiers.
Ibrahim Saadi is dragged down the street unconscious by soldiers
3rd March 2013 | International Action for Palestine, Gaza, Occupied Palestine
“Our prisoners are dying.” said Gaza student Khaled Shehab from the Islamic University. “We won’t wait till the death of another prisoner to move in solidarity with all the detainees.” Khaled was joining the thousands attending the growing number of demonstrations in the Gaza Strip right now.
Majeda Sabbah, with other students protesting the death of Arafat Jaradat in Israeli custody . Photo by Joe Catron
It is not lost on young people in Palestine acting in support of Palestinian prisoners that many who have spent years in Israeli jails were at the same age when they were originally imprisoned. While there has recently been a spotlight on the 219 Palestinian children currently detained by Israel, it is often forgotten that the majority of detainees arrested are youths or in their early twenties. Some have spent the entire decade of their twenties removed from their parents, their families and communities, a young person’s life defined by Israeli prison walls.
Mohammed Al Adini explained his story late at night in the tent erected outside the Red Cross offices in the Gaza Strip, where some Palestinians were on hunger strike in support of those striking in Israeli prisons. He was arrested aged 20 in June 2003, just short of concluding a two year office management course at a college in Deir El Balah, central Gaza. He was imprisoned for nine years and released in the prisoner swap deal after which he was able to complete his course at the University of Gaza aged 31.
Mohammed Al Adini, hunger striking in solidarity after nine years in Israeli prisons. Photo by Ehab Omar
“There were some classes in prison but we were often prevented from going. So we organized our own “internal education” where any prisoners with an academic background such as languages, history and law would teach the other prisoners. It depended on the cell we were in but classes were generally around ten to twelve students. I taught history and Palestinian issues.”
Mohammed knew many students and academics on long term prison sentences. Yassir Namrouiti visits the solidarity tent in Gaza regularly. He was studying at the University of Al Quds when he was arrested in 1987. He didn’t see freedom again until 24 years later when he was released with Mohammed in the Gilad Shalit swap deal 24 years later. Karim Younis who remains incarcerated after 31 years, was a student when arrested in 1983 and was attending classes at Ben Gurion University on the day the Israeli army raided his house. He is now a prison representative and the author of two books. His personal and historical writings from prison have reached and inspired many who support him and the other 4800 Palestinian detainees.
Mohammed does not appear bitter that his education was taken away and is enthusiastic about the rise in student solidarity. “I am so pleased that students in Gaza have rallied around the cause of the prisoners.” said Mohammed. “They are using different languages to express our cause through facebook and other media, which is something we have never been able to do before.”
Khaled shares Mohammed’s certainty that the youth of Palestine have a crucial role to play in the resistance against occupation, which is why many student leaders have been a target for Israeli arrests and incarceration. “Youth and young people are strongly involved in resistance against occupation. Israel arrests them to stop resistance. They want to destroy the educational life for the students. They are aware that students can expose them and their crimes to the world, especially now that so many are communicating directly to Western audiences.”
Student activist Khaled Shehab calling for the release of Samer Issawi . Photo by Jomanah Hadad
He cites other Palestinian students from Gaza such as Malaka Mohammed and Shahd Abusalama whose blogs and reporting on the prisoners in the English language have amassed many followers globally, with frequent updates on the individual stories of prisoners and the ordeals and injustices facing them.
The day after 30 year old Arafat Jaradat was killed after six days of Israeli detention last Monday, Majeda Sabbah, Khaled and other students immediately organized a demonstration, calling for united support for all Palestinian prisoners.
“Arafat didn’t just die” said Majeda. “He was killed under the systematic torture that takes place in Israeli Jails.”
We are here to show our support for all the hunger strikers and all the political prisoners. The sons of Palestine sacrificed their freedom and belief for others, like Samer Issawi who is now in a critical condition after a hunger strike of over six months. We young people in Gaza support them, which is why we mobilized quickly as soon as we heard about Arafat. We can’t wait for the parties to move. If we didn’t act for a united struggle then no one would.”
Most Palestinian families contain someone who has been detained in Israeli Jails or is currently incarcerated. “My uncle was a prisoner.” said Khaled. “He spent 25 years in Israeli prisons and was recently freed in the swap deal. He joked that over time they changed the prison door three times while he remained in the same room.”
For relatives of current detainees in Israel the struggle can never go away. It is a double agony – for those on the inside and those on the outside. The last hunger striker who won his freedom was Akram Rikhawi, who in his ninth year of incarceration refused food for 104 days. “When I was released I could not recognize Samah, my eleven year old daughter” Akram told us. Samah was just two years old when he had last laid eyes on her. “My wife was allowed to visit me once in that time and my mother also once. I learned of my mother’s passing on prison radio a month after she had died.”
Mohammed Al Adiny said that it was being away from his family and friends that hurt most in prison. “I would send letters to my mother. I would tell her that if she wants me to be okay, just smile. Your smile is what gives me strength is what I would tell her.”
The fight of the hunger strikers goes on. Samer Issawi, now weighing just 44 kg was recently moved to Haifa hospital after a serious deterioration in his health. Ayman Sharawna was moved to the Soroka Israel hospital in Beersheba last month, briefly falling into a coma after which for a period he was unable to move, suffering severe pain to several parts of his body.
Hana Shalabi, a female detainee released after a 43-day hunger strike in March 2012 was in attendance at Sunday’s demonstration and she described to some of the students what Samer and Ayman were going through. “I’m sorry for the death of Jaradet, sorry for his family in the West Bank. Sadly I’m not surprised, this is not a new thing with over 210 prisoners who have been killed in Israeli prisons since 1967. By my experience on hunger strike I feel what they feel. You can’t sleep because of the pain, you can’t speak, you can’t move, there’s hair loss, pains in the stomach and joints, you can’t see well, there are heart irregularities, palpitations and migraines. Soon your body, like mine, can’t accept water.”
Hana Shalabi, released after a 43-day hunger strike, remains an inspiration. Photo Eva Barlett
At the time of writing Samer Issawi and Ayman Sharawna are among 178 prisoners who are being held under what Israel defines as “Administrative Detention” . This open ended imprisonment without a formal charge has been condemned by major international human rights groups. This self-sacrifice of Samer, Ayman and the other detainees has struck a chord with young people across Palestine who are absorbed in the struggle for life and dignity of the hunger strikers. They want immediate action.
“When students and young people become more aware and start writing about israel’s crimes it’s like a disaster for Israel. We want to deliver our message all over the world. Palestinian prisoners don’t have basic human rights or dignity. They’re not treated as human beings. We demand the Israeli government release the hunger strikers.”
Adie Mormech is a Gaza-based activist with International Action for Palestine and a teacher at Al Aqsa University in Gaza City.
One international activist and two Palestinians were arrested at this Friday´s demonstration in Kufr Qaddoum.
Although being restrained by armed police, a rock is used to finish the job (source: Wafa/ICAI)
Around 150 Palestinians, together with Israeli and international activists, participated in Kufr Qaddoum’s weekly demonstration against the closure of the road leading to Nablus.
After midday prayers, protesters marched from the center of the village up the main road, but they were soon blocked by Israeli border police who threw stun grenades at the crowd. Clashes ensued for half an hour, after which Israeli forces retreated. Soon after, border police agents suddenly reappeared at the scene and, whilst throwing stun grenades, arrested two Palestinians – Belal Fathi Jomaa (22, now in Huwara military base) and Nayif Khalel Jomaa (17, currently in Megiddo prison, where Arafat Jaradat was recently murdered) – and one ISM volunteer. The Palestinians were beaten up, one with a rock against his head and the other was caused a nose bleed; whilst the international activist was, once captive, blindfolded, punched in the head twice and had rifles cocked next to him in order to intimidate him.
Israeli authorities are falsely charging the three protesters with throwing stones, a common ruse. The international activist is facing deportation within the next few days. Recently, two other international activists were deported after taking part in Canaan protest camp in the South Hebron Hills. Israeli authorities regularly falsely accuse international human rights activists in order to deport them. This can be seen by the fact that no evidence of crime was presented during the ISMer´s court hearing on Sunday.
Palestinian getting arrested by Israeli border police during Kufr Qaddoum weekly protest, 1st March 2013.
Another international activist who was present at the scene stated: “We will never be deterred by these arrests and deportations. We are not doing anything illegal, but supporting the Palestinian people in their legitimate struggle against an illegal military occupation. We will continue coming to Palestine, in hundreds and thousands. Israel will never stop the movement of international solidarity.”
28 February 2013 | International Solidarity Movement and Corporate Watch, London, Complicit Britain
Two British peace activists have been detained in recent weeks after arriving home from the West Bank, occupied Palestine. They have been detained and taken in for questioning, over suspected links with the International Solidarity Movement.
“We are concerned about the British police using anti-terrorist legislation to target non-violent pro-Palestinian activists. We are a transparent group, trying to uphold the principles of international law; even inside Israel the International Solidarity Movement is not considered illegal. We would encourage the British Police to ask any questions they wish to do so, directly, and not by detaining affiliated activists at the airport”
Schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act 2000, which the two activists have been held on, allows the police, under certain specified circumstances, to arrest individuals without a warrant who are reasonably suspected of being terrorists. These laws are draconian measures which give the British police powers to detain suspects for up to 28 days without charge.
Schedule 7 is clearly being used as a tool to find out more about activists involved in a wide variety of types of political dissent and to provide profiles of activists for the police to use in trying to undermine political movements. None of the questions about movements in the UK were designed to root out terrorism or uncover the preparation for terrorism. In fact, the movements concerned have never even been accused of terrorism (with the exception of completely false accusations made against the ISM, see here).
Britain abstained at the last vote at the United Nations deciding whether Palestine should be accepted as a non-member observer state. But in the last two weeks the double standards of the British government in relation to Palestine and Israel have again been laid bare; Saeed Amireh, has been refused a visa to visit the UK. Amireh is a peaceful campaigner against Israel’s occupation and the theft of Nilin’s land. He was told he hadn’t provided “enough supporting documents”, even though he had supplied everything that was asked for, including a letter of invitation and guarantee from the UK Palestine Solidarity Campaign of his costs being paid.
The use of these powers as a way to clamp down on non violent activists from Palestine and Britain is not acceptable, what is the British government afraid of? Maybe the fact the activists, returning home from Palestine, work with Corporate Watch and have helped reveal the continued supply of weaponry from Britain to the Israeli army has made them a target. This is despite the current British arms export policy stating it won’t deliver weapons to any countries breaking UN treaties. British companies are still complicit in Israeli war crimes in Gaza, as was proved in the EDO Decommisioners case of 2010.
The European Union is actively supporting Apartheid Israel with its current trade agreements. Enough is enough; keep the pressure up, 2013 is the time for justice in Palestine.
As more and more of us become aware of the systematic denial of Palestinians human rights by Israel military occupation, it is time to make our elected representatives aware of the growing and unstoppable pressure for peace and justice.
The EU should be playing a leading role in implementing policies to ensure that Israel ends its illegal occupation, uphold international law and respect Palestinian human rights.
Instead, they are supporting Israel’s occupation by:
allowing illegal settlement products to be traded across Europe
by using EU tax-payers money to fund Israeli military companies that are responsible for killing civilians and supporting Israel’s military occupation
As recommended by European Union consuls general in East Jerusalem and Ramallah in a recent report, the European Union must divest from settlements and economic sanctions should be put on bodies and companies involved in settlement industry. A report submitted to the UN´s Human Rights Council by an independent fact-finding mission, has also called on all relevant international actors, private or state-connected to take “all necessary steps” to ensure that they were respecting human rights, “including by terminating their business interests in the settlements”.
This is a step forward but not enough; keep the pressure on EU representatives to suspend trade agreements with Israel until they fully and completely abide by international law.
It is time for actions, not words. Tell the EU to act now.
