Author: ISM Media Group

Another attack on human rights worker by Hebron settlers

by ISM Hebron, November 23rd

At 11.30 three of us went to the olive groves to protect the Palestinian families living in isolated homes among the olive trees.

Two settlers came towards us from the Seyaj House yelling abuse at us “Fuck Jesus. We killed Jesus and we’ll kill you too!” We began filming and kept ourselves between them and the Palestinian homes. They tried to enter Hani’s house where we knew there were a number of small children and two women. We refused to let them up the path and they headed off up into the Abu Haikal olive orchard. We contacted other human rights workers (HRWs) to make sure that there were people at the Abu Haikal house in case they made their way there.

We did not see them again but as we were checking the olive orchard to see where they had gone we noticed another settler, dressed all in white, sitting in the far corner of the orchard and either reading or praying. We kept an eye on him. At around 4pm we saw him move towards the Abu Haikal house so another HRW and I climbed up into the orchard to follow him. We began to film him since he was already trespassing on Palestinian land. He began to climb the wall towards the Abu Haikal house but was not able to get over the fence at the top of the wall. He started shouting and waving to the settlers who were on top of the military observation post close by.

After a while he came down and began to move back towards H’s house. The other HRW had moved out of the orchard back to the Hedad House. I was worried about the children there so I moved through the orchard quickly to try to get to Hani’s garden first. Suddenly he started to run and charged straight at me. This was the first aggressive move he had made so I was taken by surprise. I ran towards Hani’s house. To get into Hani’s garden I had to climb down a rough stone wall about a metre high. He reached me as I got there and gave me a savage push over the wall. I hit my head on a stone and fell into the garden. He laughed at me. As I lay there I turned the camera on him and he began to run away. I got up to follow him and shouted to warn the other HRWs whom he was running towards. There was a group of about 20 settler tourists standing next to the Hedad House listening to a tour guide and he ran through them and down the hill towards Shuhada St.

I could see that my thumb was gashed but not too badly. I could not see the wound on my head but it did not seem to be too bad. My ankle was not too painful. I had a bit of a headache but I decided to keep working as we had another hour before sunset and there was a large number of tourists hanging around the houses. At one point there were over 80 settlers gathered around a tour guide and stopping at various points in the olive groves. One or two of them attempted to enter Palestinian land but went away when we told them they could not enter.

At around 4.30 I heard some loud chanting from somewhere near the mosque. I assumed it was the settlers but when I went to investigate I discovered that a large group of Palestinian children were demonstrating against the large settler presence outside their houses. The settlers left and there was no trouble.

At around 9pm one of the other HRWs in our apartment offered to clean up my head wound for me. She discovered that it was quite deep and long and thought it might need stitches so I went to Al Ahli hospital where I was given 2 stitches. They x-rayed my left ankle and decided it was not broken but probably sprained. They bandaged it up for me and cleaned and dressed the wound on my right thumb.

Caterpillar homewrecker’s visit to London

from Indymedia UK, November 24th

On Wednesday 22nd November around 50 protesters, including the Rhythms of Resistance samba band, turned out to ‘greet’ Michael Baunton, the Vice President of Caterpillar. He was due to speak at the Institute of Mechanical Engineers’ Annual Dinner. The function was held in the ballroom of the Grosvenor House Hotel. Caterpillar hold the sole contract for the supply of military D9 bulldozers to the Israeli army. Caterpillar machines are used to destroy Palestinian homes in acts of collective punishment, build checkpoints and roadblocks to restrict civilian movement, build illegal Israeli colonies on Palestinian lands, destroy Palestinian olive trees and agricultural land, build the illegal annexation wall and murder civilians.

Since 2003 a campaign, triggered by the murder of ISM activist Rachel Corrie, has been building to force Caterpillar to end all contracts with Israel. People have taken action in the UK, the US and all over Europe.

Due to pressure from campaigners and rebuke from the U.N., Caterpillar have been forced to make public statements about the use of the D9 by the Israeli army. Caterpillar’s position is that they no longer supply D9s to Israel but they will not say whether they supply parts to maintain the Israeli army’s existing D9s.

Protesters originally gathered at the back and front entrances of Grosvenor House. The police issued a highly dubious Section 14 (Public Order Act 1984) order, restricting protest to the front of the hotel. The main purpose of the order seemed to be to make it easier for the police to control the protest. However, the order was never fully enforced and there was a constant activist presence at the back of the hotel.

Participants included the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Jewish Socialist Group, Jews For Justice for Palestinians, War on Want, Architect and Planners for Justice in Palestine, Rhythms of Resistance, International Solidarity Movement a member of the Institute of Mechanical Engineers and an insurgent clown.

The police were petty and controlling throughout, corralling activists in a pen and threatening arrests for blocking the pavement. However, the event was a success with all delegates to the event hearing the message of protest against the decision to invite Michael Baunton.


an armoured Caterpillar vehicle demolishing a home in Nablus this August

Wednesday’s protest was part of a long running worldwide campaign against Caterkiller. As well as being the IDF’s weapon of choice in Palestine Caterpillar bulldozers have been used by Robert Mugabe to bulldoze the homes of 300 000 Zimbabwean slum dwellers, leaving thousands homeless, and by the Mexican state to bulldoze the Oaxaca barricades after the recent rebellion.

Caterpillar use their easily recognizable trademark to sell clothing and footwear worldwide, operating through the Wolvine subsidiary. Campaigners against the company have tried to inform consumers about the company’s human rights record in countless creative high street actions

UK campaigners have held a series of occupations and protest at Caterpillar HQs around the country. Many protests have been focused on Caterpillar’s European financial headquarters in Solihull where activists have attempted to deliver a ‘Homewrecker of the Year Award’ to Caterpillar management.

Around this time Caterpillar employed the services of the Inkerman Group, an Ashford and Knightsbridge based ‘counter-terrorism’ group, to investigate activists campaigning against the company. Caterpillar are an arms company, making tank engines and other military equipment as well as military bulldozers. They are an exhibitor at DSEI, Europe’s biggest arms fair, held in London biannually.

Activists have tried to blacken Caterpillar’s brand wherever they try to promote themselves organizing protest at trade fairs around the UK. Many councils and universities have sizable investments in Caterpillar, resulting in a number of campaigns for divestment.

The General Synod of the Church of England voted to divest its considerable funds from Caterpillar last year, the Church’s financial body has refused to remove the funds leading to a Methodist Church in the US disassociating itself from the Church of England, and a Parish in Berkshire withdrawing its funds from the financial body.

Caterpillar has attracted criticism from the UN over its continued supply of weapons to Israel, and actions have taken place in Europe and the USA. The US AGM of the corporation this year was dominated by the company’s record in the Middle East.

All of this has led Caterpillar to announce that it will not continue selling D9s to Israel, but the company refuses to confirm whether it supplies spares to maintain existing D9s. Caterpillar machines continue to be used in Palestine and protestors continue to apply pressure on the comapny.

The campaign against Caterkiller is part of the worldwide campaign for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions against Apartheid Israel. On 9 June, 2005, a coalition of Palestinian Civil Society Organisations issued a “call for boycott, divestment and sanctions against Israel until it complies with international law’ after the International Court of Justice in the Hague deemed Israel’s annexation wall illegal. The Palestinian boycott call urges activists to campaign against companies who profit from the Israeli occupation.

CATerpillar – The Alternative Report – War on Want Publication

Boycott Caterpillar – D9 Sample Flyer

Boycott Caterpillar Footwear Sample Flyer

Amnesty International: “Israel: Fear for Safety”

23 November 2006, PUBLIC AI Index: MDE 15/092/2006 — UA 315/06 Fear for safety

URGENT ACTION, ISRAEL/OT: Human rights defenders in the Occupied Territories

Human rights defenders working in the Occupied Territories are at risk of attack by Israeli settlers. Amnesty International is concerned at the latest such attack against those who seek through their presence to afford protection to Palestinians and to bear witness to the abuses perpetrated against them by Israeli settlers in the area.

On 18 November, Tove Johannsson, a 19-year old Swedish human rights defender, was assaulted by Israeli settlers as she accompanied Palestinian school children through an Israeli army checkpoint near the Tel Rumeida Israeli settlement in the West Bank city of Hebron.

The attack against Tove Johannsson, a volunteer with the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), a solidarity group of peace activists, was witnessed and documented by several other international human rights defenders. They reported that the group was surrounded by up to 100 Israeli settlers who spat at them, kicked and shoved them, while Israeli soldiers standing at the checkpoint nearby took no action to prevent the attack.

Tove Johannsson was then hit in the face with a broken bottle by an Israeli settler, and sustained a broken cheekbone and a fracture near her eye. Her colleagues reported that as she fell to the ground, a group of settlers who were watching the attack clapped and cheered and some tried to take photos of themselves next to her bleeding face, giving the camera a ‘thumbs-up’ sign.

According to the ISM, one of the human rights defenders who witnessed the attack identified three of the assailants to the police but, after detaining them briefly, police released the three settlers, and threatened to arrest the remaining human rights activists if they did not leave the area immediately. Tove Johannsson filed a complaint with the Israeli police and her colleagues
gave witness statements, but none of the assailants are known to have been arrested. On 21 November, the Swedish Foreign Ministry expressed concern over the assault.

This latest attack is one of many perpetrated by Israeli settlers against international human rights defenders in recent months and years, seemingly in an attempt to discourage and eliminate the presence of international witnesses, thereby depriving the local Palestinian population of this limited form of protection.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

In August 2006, a Swedish and an Austrian national working for the international organization, the Christian Peacemaker Team (CPT), were attacked by Israeli settlers in the Southern Hebron Hills area as they accompanied Palestinian shepherds to their land near Israeli settlements. CPT members have worked in the Hebron area for several years accompanying farmers to their land and monitoring the conduct of Israeli settlers in the area, and have themselves been frequently attacked by Israeli settlers. Amnesty International delegates were also assaulted and beaten with wooden clubs by Israeli settlers in the Southern Hebron Hills area in October 2004, as they were investigating repeated attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinian children from isolated villages on their way to and from school.

No investigations are known to have been carried out into the complaints lodged with the Israeli police by Amnesty International delegates and by dozens of International human rights defenders who have been attacked by Israeli settlers in recent years. The same is true for the complaints lodged by Palestinian victims of settlers’ attacks. The impunity enjoyed by the settlers responsible for such attacks has in turn encouraged further attacks.

A detailed study published earlier this year by the Israeli human rights group Yesh Din – Volunteers for Human Rights, which seeks to promote law enforcement in cases of settlers’ violence, found that 90 percent of complaints filed with the Israeli police against Israeli settlers’ attacks were closed without indictments being issued; and that in the rare cases when assailants were indicted and convicted for such attacks, the sentencing was not commensurate with the nature of the attacks (see: http://www.yesh-din.org/site/index.php?page=report&lang=en )

Amnesty International has repeatedly called on the Israeli authorities to remove Israeli settlements in the Occupied Territories, which are illegal under international law.

Four day military detention for non-violent Bil’in activist

by the ISM media team, November 24th

At today’s weekly protest against the apartheid wall in Bil’in, villagers tried to reach their land on the other side of the wall with a tractor to plough it. Bil’in villagers have been prevented from taking agricultural vehicles through the illegal gates in the wall to work their land, and recently soldiers have also tried to prevent internationals joining villagers on the other side of the wall. Around 50 villagers were joined by international and Israeli activists for today’s tractor-led march to the wall.

As the protesters attempted to remove the razor-wire in front of the gate, soldiers fired multiple sound bombs and used their shields against the non-violent activists. The soldiers refrained however from using tear gas, probably because the wind would have blown it back towards them.

Non-violent activist from Bil’in, Ayad Burnat, was seized and badly beaten by soldiers when he reached the other side of the gate. He was then arrested and is currently in detention in Ofer where he will be held for four days. Villagers have been told Ayad has been charged with throwing stones, a clearly false charge — Ayad was with the peaceful demonstrators the whole time, and often prevents children from throwing stones at Bil’in demonstrations. Today’s arrest follows the targetting of four other activists on Tuesday evening.

The IOF followed up this arbitrary arrest by clambering over the gate to ‘guard’ the razor-wire from further attention.

After the demo soldiers shot 10 children and a journalist with rubber bullets as well as firing tear-gas at residents’ homes on the edge of the village.

Conference on popular non-violent joint struggle


Yes to Justice! No to Occupation!

The Bil’in Popular Committee Against the Apartheid Wall and Settlements invites you to the 2nd Annual Conference on Popular Non-violent Joint Struggle

April 18–20th, 2007 — Bil’in, West Bank

This conference hopes to create a network to improve coordination, share resources, support each other’s work for justice, and create joint campaigns to stop the Apartheid Wall and end the Israeli occupation.

We will continue to devise bold ways of non-violence that say “no” to occupation and “yes” to a just peace.

We will learn from each others practical experience, share tactics and build on one another’s strengths.

Come and be part of the joint Nonviolent struggle!

About Bil’in

Bil’in is a Palestinian village that is struggling to exist. Since early 2005, the state of Israel has annexed close to 60% of our land for Israeli settlements and for the construction of Israel’s apartheid wall.

Bil’in is fighting to safeguard our land, our people, and our liberty.

Bil’in’s Popular Committee and village residents, supported by Israeli and international activists, have peacefully demonstrated every Friday since February 2005 in front of the “work-site of shame” in opposition to the presence of the Apartheid Wall. The Israeli army has consistently responded with teargas, sound bombs, clubs, rubber-coated steel bullets, and live ammunition.

Bil’in is a symbol of what is happening across all of Palestine. By participating in the conference in Bil’in, you help everyone in Palestine continue their struggle for liberty.

Details and Registration

Participants will stay with families in Bil’in. The cost of the conference is 15 Euros (roughly $20) per day. This price includes room and board. To register, send an email to bel3en@yahoo.com