Author: ISM Media Group

Settlers annex and destroy more land in Susiya

by Palestine Solidarity Project, October 26th

On October 21, soldiers and settlers from Susiya settlement came with army- issued bulldozers and proceeded to destroy 150 Dunums (1 Dunum=1/4 acre) of olive groves belonging to the Palestinians. The groves belong to the families of Ashmasti, Abu Sopea and Asha Bin who live in Susiya bedouin camp. The families had planned to harvest these olives at the end of Ramadan, when they would be finished fasting and have more energy to work. Because of the economic crisis throughout Palestine, and the particularly difficult situation for small farming communities in this area which is the beginning of the Negev desert, the demolition of this land will have unbelievably devastating consequences for the people of Susiya, and their ability to survive through the winter, when they will have little or no income.

Susiya settlement is not more than 40 Dunums away from the camp. It started as a trailer camp over 10 years ago and, like many settlements, they were not at first supported by Israel. A group of Israelis decided they would go there and make new houses on this land, and eventually, when they brought enough people, the army would have no choice but to support and protect them. Today, Susiya settlement consists of many permanent houses which are protected by a constant military presence. Often times, when settlers go to attack the Palestinians, they do so with the accompaniment of one of these soldiers. They are currently constructing tents outside of this settlement to watch the Palestinian families and to annex more land for this illegal settlement.

In the past, these settlers have destroyed many crops belonging to the people of Susiya. A little over 1 year ago, settlers and soldiers came to demolish an olive grove, only to plant new olive trees on this same land they had just stolen. Recently, a group of settlers from the camp made bread from poisonous water and fed it to a flock of sheep belonging to the Palestinians. They have stolen trees, fruits, vegetables and animals. They attack these families on a regular basis. The families have tried calling lawyers, police, and the Israeli army, but no action has ever been taken on their behalf. When Abu Khalil was stabbed one month ago, no one was charged with the incident. This story continues.

The olives that were destroyed today were ripe, plump and ready to be picked. Now, the crops these families were depending on are gone, and with it, any possibility of future harvests as this land is now stolen by the settlers, who will, with the support of the Israeli army, claim it as their own and prevent Palestinians from going on it. We believe they will use this as some type of farming land for themselves, as is customary when settlements use this strategy to annex more land. Once they have occupied the land, the Israeli government rarely orders them to return it, and it usually is seen as an extension of the settlement.

PSP will continue to follow this situation.

Two Roadblocks Removed in One Day

by Palestine Solidarity Project, October 26th

October 23, 2006, members of the Palestine Solidarity Project joined with Israeli peace groups Ta’ayush and Anarchists Againt The Wall to challenge the validity of the illegally created road blocks that have been forced upon many Palestinian villages, severely limiting their freedom of movement and access to essentials such as schools, hospitals, and economic centers.

They began their work in the village of Al-Jab’a where they had tried several times to remove a roadblock blocking the path from Surif to Al-Jab’a. As they waited for more demonstrators to join them, an Israeli military hummer pulled up and was parked in front of the roadblock. Fearing an early confrontation here might influence the success of their other planned actions, the activists proceeded to move onto the village of Zif.

Once in Zif, Palestinian, Israeli, and international activists immediately moved to attach ropes to the large cement blocks. Upon realizing the demonstrators’ intentions, nearby Palestinians quickly joined them and took their spots on the rope. They pulled and pushed together until finally they were able to remove 2 blocks. The army did not see the activists nor did they come to interfere in the action. The activists returned to the cars and moved on to the village of Beit Ommar, leaving the Palestinians of Zif with a semi-open road and with more ease in transportation.

When the activists arrived in Beit Ommar they again began to attach the ropes to the blocks. This would be PSP’s second attempt at opening this road. Palestinians from Beit Ommar, along with the traveling international and Israeli activists quickly removed 2 more concrete blocks from the road. As they were finishing with the second stone, the army arrived. During the first attempt to open this roadblock, the army violently attacked demonstrators, causing several severe injuries. Because of this, the activists decided to disperse, as the road had already been successfully opened.

As of 2 days after the actions, both roads remain open.

Haaretz: “So much for another kind of olive harvest”

by Akiva Eldar, October 26th

Who remembers nowadays that Amir Peretz made dismantling illegal outposts a condition for Yisrael Beiteinu joining the government – with the agreement of the knight of law and order, Avigdor Lieberman? What became of Peretz’s vows to reexamine the separation fence route designed by a settler who the attorney general admits misled the High Court? Anyone interested in the fate of Palestinian olive grove owners will discover that, as far as they are concerned, Lieberman can move right into the Defense Minister’s Office.

Peretz’s celebratory promises that this year’s olive harvest would be different than those of past years are shattered daily at Israel Defense Forces checkpoints. Even the High Court injunction to permit farmers to work their land makes no impression on security forces.

Members of the Yesh Din-Volunteers for Human Rights organization, who go out to the field every day, reported yesterday that the IDF had completely blocked access to groves in five West Bank villages. The IDF prevents farmers in three villages from entering their land on the west side of the separation fence. Another six villages were informed their lands had been closed or seized by the military. In at least one case, farmers were thrown off their land without being presented any orders at all. Farmers in 10 villages were ordered to harvest olives on specific dates and seek advance permission from security officials before entering their land.

According to the IDF spokesman, these orders were intended only to assure that farmers would coordinate their efforts with the IDF, and only dealt with the minimal tracts of land permitted in the High Court ruling. One brief hour after the spokesman responded, four thugs from Havat Gilead attacked olive harvesters from the village of Farata. None of the perpetrators were detained.

Peretz missed the opportunity to demand that, in return for Lieberman joining the government, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert grant a smidgeon of his promise to discuss the Syrian president’s threats to make peace – not to mention the Arab peace initiative. Peretz’s right to exist in the Defense Ministry rests on his (for now) determined stand on the Gaza Strip. Peretz remains the only solid obstacle preventing IDF Chief of Staff Dan Halutz from reoccupying it. One can readily find a hint of this in his statements this week regarding his lack of desire to grapple with a hypothetical dysentery outbreak in Gaza.

Someone apparently told Peretz that Halutz’s southern adventure would lead to the dismantling of the Palestinian Authority and grant responsibility for 1.3 million Palestinians to Israel. The Defense Ministry knows the statistics. Military administration in the territories would cost the Israeli taxpayer at least NIS 1 billion per month.

Peretz’s ability to restrain Halutz will depend on the number of Qassam rockets that fall on the defense minister’s hometown, Sderot, over the next few days. The number of Qassam missiles is directly connected to the number of Palestinians killed in IDF attacks.

Empowering Abbas

Amid the chaos that grips the territories, Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas has almost no influence on developing events. Olmert says Abbas is weak. Olmert is the only man in the world who can empower him. He can do this by handing the chairman – and only the chairman – thousands of aging, female and young prisoners. Tens of thousands of the prisoners’ relatives will impose a siege on Hamas offices in Gaza until Khaled Meshal orders Gilad Shalit returned home.

But Abbas concluded long ago that salvation would not come from Olmert. His most recent meeting with U.S. President George W. Bush convinced him that as long as Hamas is in power, America is lost to him. Even if Haniyeh sings “Hatikva,” Israel’s national anthem, in Rabin Square, the U.S. will cover its ears. The latest draft on a unity government that Hamas delivered to Qatar failed to receive even one line of international press, not to mention Israeli media notice.

Hamas failed, once again, to pronounce the word “Israel,” or declare (of course), “We recognize the State of Israel.” On the other hand, the document includes recognition of international law and a commitment to honor all agreements signed by the PA and Fatah, while demanding the rights and interests of the Palestinian people be guaranteed. Hamas also promises to employ legitimate means in the battle for ensuring Palestinian rights and ending the occupation. They differentiate these means from terror (some interpret this as a reference to Israeli terror). The document declares that the goal is bringing about the creation of a Palestinian state within territories occupied in 1967.

Yesterday, a baseless rumor was circulating that after the end of the Id al-Fitr holiday, the chairman would disband the government and announce the establishment of a temporary, technocrat government until the next elections. In these elections, parties that wish to run would be required to recognize previous agreements, including recognition of Israel, and denounce terror before the polls are opened. Just in case Hamas fails to accept these terms happily, the Americans have equipped Abbas’ Presidential Guard with their finest weapons and a lot of greenbacks.

The honor of the court

Piercing statements by Attorney Orit Koren, who is responsible for High Court appeals in the State Prosecutor’s Office, left no room for doubt. This violation of court orders is an extraordinary act that deserves an aggressive response.

“There is no need to describe the gravity of these acts committed in defiance of an interim order handed down by the honorable court,” wrote Koren regarding the behavior of the construction company.

She added that defiance of the order to cease building took place with no permit and contrary to the legal plan. If that is not enough, work to open the road at a building site in the Matityahu Mizrach settlement contradicts the plan created to rectify the original violation. The road crossed through two lots earmarked for residential units and another lot designated as open public space.

After all these harsh statements, one might assume the state prosecutor has decided to join Peace Now in requesting an immediate injunction to stop construction, return things to their former state and take action regarding this apparent contempt of court. Right? Not at all.

“Despite these statements, in light of humanitarian circumstances that have developed,” the prosecution writes, “there is reason to permit aspects of the plan to be completed over an interim period, ‘temporary preparations’ of the road.”

Koren explains that blocking public vehicles from using the only access route to the Heftziba Company’s housing complex will injure 80 needy (ultra-Orthodox) families that rely on public transportation to reach shopping centers and services in the veteran community of Modi’in Elite. One wonders if the sympathetic prosecutor would have shown the same consideration if Palestinians had built hundreds of residential units on Jewish land without permits and later defied a court order to stop construction.

Michael Sfard, the attorney for Peace Now who has been involved in settlement issues for years, says the prosecutor’s position is evidence that systematic tolerance of law violations is not the sole domain of settlers and politicians. Sfard warns that the prosecutor’s statements will be broadly quoted by those who build illegal outposts and annex land in the West Bank. He doubts the High Court has the authority to authorize a breach of law, as the prosecution requests.

Every request granted

Thousands of Palestinian families spent their holidays far from their parents and children. According to data from the statistics department of the PA Ministry of Prisoners Affairs, last June about 10,100 Palestinian prisoners, including 335 minors and 104 women, were being held in Israeli incarceration facilities and prisons. Some 369 prisoners have been held for more than 12 years. In other words, they were imprisoned before the Oslo Accords and the establishment of the PA, and were not released after the Oslo Accords. Of these veteran prisoners, 45 have been held for more than 20 years, and seven of the 45 have been held for more than 25 years.

Most of the prisoners – 55 percent – were never tried or convicted. They might actually be considered kidnapped. Attorney Amit Gurewitz spent two days in military court at the Ofer military base. In the last issue of the journal “Hapraklitim,” (Prosecutors), published by the Tel Aviv Attorneys Association, he described how a state of law sends people to jail. Hundreds were detained on the same day. Every request to prosecute was granted. Not a single arrest failed to be extended.

Prisoners are led in groups of five to the cabin where the judge sits. Defendant Morad Yousef was detained half a year ago because he was suspected of throwing rocks in 2001. The prosecution has still not had the time to prepare an indictment. His attorney does not have firsthand knowledge of his “classified” case. The judge is also reading the case for the first time.

His attorney says, “He was not arrested immediately after incrimination. Thus, he is not dangerous and should be released.”

The judge does not respond. He tells the prosecution, “I examined the investigation and found the basis of evidence at this point.”

Next case: Rafat Salem Okat. The judge: “Just a minute, I will read the file … The prosecution may have difficulty supporting each risk separately but the entirety reveals a clear picture.” The attorney: “This is a classic case for dismissal.” The prosecution: “Risk of danger, risk of flight.” The judge extends the remand by another eight days. In another case the judge decides, “Because a problem makes it difficult to examine the defense attorney’s claims, the defendant will remain in custody until the resumption of the hearing.”

“It is possible to discuss the security situation and the justice of arrests,” writes Gurewitz, “But it is difficult and shameful to cloak this in the pretense of a ‘trial.'”

BBC World Service: “Escolta para la cosecha” (Escort for the Harvest)

by Karim Hauser, BBC Spanish World Service , October 24th
English translation below

En el Líbano, pude constatar que los agricultores del sur del país tienen dos opciones: perder la cosecha, o adentrarse en sus campos y perder la vida al pisar un explosivo sin detonar, cortesía de los bombardeos israelíes en el conflicto que terminó hace dos meses.

En los territorios palestinos, si bien no hay explosivos en las parcelas, lo que sí hay es una barrera de separación, un sinnúmero de retenes de control y áreas donde los colonos judíos diariamente boicotean la cosecha.

“La aceituna y el aceite son de las fuentes primordiales del sector agrícola. Y por eso el olivar es básico para los campesinos palestinos”, señaló a BBC Mundo Abdel Jawad Saleh, ex ministro de Agricultura palestino.

Si bien la cosecha del olivo 2006 apenas comienza, ya hay varias quejas de individuos que no pueden explotar debidamente su tierra.

Agricultores en apuros

“La ocupación israelí ha cercenado cientos de miles de árboles. Y ese muro de separación, en realidad no es para seguridad sino para confiscar las mejores tierras de Cisjordania, en especial las irrigadas” dijo a BBC Mundo Abdel Jawad Saleh, ex ministro de Agricultura.

“Otro enorme problema que enfrentan son los colonos judíos que se han insertado en la profundidad del campo palestino y no dejan a los agricultores en paz, al atacarlos o arrancar los árboles o arruinarlos con productos químicos”.

Mohammed Raja, tiene 44 años y vive en Burin, Cisjordania. Su parcela tiene 150 olivos, 20 almendros y 20 higueros. “Nosotros estamos rodeados de cuatro asentamientos y enfrentamos muchos problemas, sobretodo desde la segunda intifada. A principios de este año los colonos vinieron con palos a arruinar los plantíos”, me dijo en una conversación telefónica.

“No te puedo decir cuántos problemas hay por semana. Hace 5 minutos mi padre quería transportar dos bolsas sobre el burro. Ya en el camino lo interceptaron dos coches con colonos y golpearon al burro; mi padre apenas pudo saltar a tiempo”, añadió.

Sin embargo, el ejército no tiene registro de estos problemas. “Hasta ahora todo se pudo recolectar y ha sido aprovechado en su totalidad; no tenemos ninguna queja registrada en la Oficina de Enlace”, dijo a BBC Mundo Hernán Jeberovich, portavoz del ejército israelí.

Escoltando al campesino

Así como hay colonos israelíes determinados a impedir el acceso de los campesinos palestinos, hay otros ciudadanos que luchan para garantizarlo.

El rabino Arik Ascherman pertenece a Rabinos por los Derechos Humanos, que junto con otras organizaciones, como el Movimiento de la Solidaridad Internacional o Machsom Watch, escoltan a los palestinos a sus tierras.

“Estamos presentes en más de 30 pueblos palestinos desde el año 2002. Año tras año ha habido progreso pero no es suficiente”, dijo el rabino.

En junio de este año, después de una apelación interpuesta en noviembre de 2004, la Suprema Corte de Israel reconoció el derecho de acceso de los palestinos a sus tierras, con protección del propio ejército israelí.

“La única forma de entrar aquí es a través del camino de los asentamientos, no hay otro acceso. Y eso sólo se puede hacer mediante la coordinación con los israelíes y es ahí donde con los extranjeros usan su influencia, pero ellos no están constantemente con nosotros, sino que si tenemos problemas les llamamos y ellos piden al ejército que intervenga para protegernos”, dijo a BBC Mundo el campesino Mohamed Raja, de Burin, Cisjordania.

Escolta incómoda

Según el diario israelí Haaretz, hace una semana las Fuerzas de Defensa Israelíes exigieron que los agricultores palestinos no sean escoltados a sus tierras por simpatizantes israelíes y extranjeros.

El rabino Ascherman reaccionó a las restricciones del ejército. “Creo que el ejército está enojado, debido a la sentencia de la Suprema Corte. Aunque algunos comandantes han reconocido que somos útiles, otros ceden a la intensa presión de los colonos”, indicó el religioso judío a la BBC.

Por su parte Hernán Jeberovich, portavoz del ejército, matizó estas afirmaciones. “Ellos pueden acompañar a los agricultores, si lo desean. El ejército no tiene objeciones.

Pero existe una mínima cantidad de áreas en donde hay mucha fricción y se pide que sean sólo los campesinos los que ingresen. Son razones de seguridad y no de ideología”, dijo a BBC Mundo.

Pero el rabino Arik Ascherman no está de acuerdo. “Justamente esas pequeñas áreas son precisamente donde más nos necesitan.

En algunas partes reconocemos que complicamos las cosas para el ejército, ya que en efecto los colonos están más molestos por nuestra presencia que por la de los palestinos”, respondió Ascherman.

“Pero lo que está haciendo el ejército es impedirnos el acceso a áreas cada vez más extensas.”

Entre la espada y la pared

Varios observadores concuerdan que la situación en Cisjordania está mejor regulada y la decisión de la Suprema Corte indica buena voluntad. Pero en las tierras ubicadas entre la nueva barrera de separación y la frontera de Cisjordania de 1967, conocida como línea verde, la situación es otra.

El ingreso de Salah El Teily depende totalmente de la agricultura. Tiene 44 años y 6 hijos, vive en Tulkarem y tiene que obtener permisos para llegar a su parcela. “El muro me separa de mi terreno y teníamos prohibido pasar, hasta que los extranjeros intervinieron y nos consiguieron permisos. Pero el ejército sirve para proteger a los colonos y no a nosotros.”

Y es que la intervención de las ONGs resulta esencial para el movimiento de estos pequeños agricultores. “La gente necesita un permiso especial para entrar a esas tierras ubicadas entre la barrera de separación y la línea verde”, dijo a BBC Mundo Sylvia Piterman de la ONG Machsom Watch.

“Hay familias enteras a las que no les reconocen la propiedad de sus tierras, después de haberlas trabajado durante generaciones; hay también unas 200 mil personas consideradas “peligrosas” a las que no les dan acceso; o familias muy grandes que sólo reciben permisos para pocos miembros de su familia”, explicó Piterman. “Las cosas se han puesto más dificiles que en años anteriores”.

¿Y qué pasa con esas tierras inaccesibles? “Hay una vieja ley otomana; si la tierra no se trabaja deja de ser propiedad de los individuos y pasa a manos del estado. Y la gente está bastante desesperada con eso”, aseveró Sylvia Piterman.

***********************************************************************************

In the Lebanon, you could say that the farmers in the south of the country have two options: to lose the harvest, or to go into the fields and be killed by an unexploded bomb, courtesy of the Israeli bombings in the conflict that finished two months ago.

In the Palestinian territories, although there are no explosives in the fields, there is a separation barrier, an endless number of checkpoints and areas where the illegal Israeli settlers interfere with the harvest on a daily basis.

“The olive and the oil are the fundamentals of the agricultural sector. And for that reason the olive grove is a basic for the Palestinian farmers “, said Abdel Jawad Saleh, ex- minister of Palestinian Agriculture to BBC World.

Although the 2006 harvest of olive trees has only just begun, already there are several complaints that individuals that cannot operate properly on their land.

Farmers Endure Hardships

“The Israeli occupation has cut down hundreds of thousands of trees. And that separation wall, in fact is not for security but to confiscate the best land in the West Bank, especially the irrigated sectors”said Abdel Jawad Saleh, ex- minister of Agriculture, to BBC World.

“Another enormous problem that we face is the illegal settlements that have been established deep into Palestinian rural areas and the settlers do not leave the farmers in peace; they attack them or uproot the trees or ruin the olives with chemical agents”.

Then there are times that the farmers have to throw olives on the ground because they do not have the right to move them, said to Saleh to BBC World from Ramallah.

Mohammed Raja, is 44 years old and lives in Burin, in the West Bank. His parcel of land has 150 olive trees, 20 almond trees and 20 vines. “We are surrounded by four settlements and have faced many problems, since the second intafada. At the beginning of this year the settlers came with sticks to ruin the plants”, he said to me in a telephone conversation.

“I cannot say to you how many problems it has been per week. 5 minutes ago my father wanted to transport two bags on the donkey. On the way they intercepted him with two cars filled with settlers. They struck the donkey and my father who jumped out of the way,” he added.

Nevertheless, the army does not have a register of these problems. “Until now it was not possible to collect this information and it has been taken advantage of; we do not have any complaint registered in the Office of Coordination “, said Hernán Jeberovich, Israeli army spokesman to BBC World.

Escorting the Farmers

As well as Israeli settlers who try to prevent access to the Palestinian farmers, there are other Israeli citizens who fight to guarantee it.

Rabbi Arik Ascherman belongs to Rabbis For Human Rights that along with other organizations, like the International Solidarity Movement or Machsom Watch, escort to the Palestinians to their land.

“We have been present in more than 30 Palestinian towns and villages from year 2002. Year after year there has been progress but it is not sufficient “, said the rabbi.

In June of this year, after an appeal made in November 2004, the Supreme Court of Israel recognized the right of access of the Palestinians to their land, under the protection of the Israeli army.

“The only way to enter the land here is by way of the settlements, is no another access. And that can be only done by coordination with the Israelis, that is where the foreigners can use their influence, but they are not constantly with us, but if we have problems we call them and they request that the army protects us “, said the farmer Mohamed Raja, of Burin, West
Bank, to BBC World.

Uncomfortable Escort

According to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, one week ago the Israeli Defence Forces demanded that the Palestinian farmers are not escorted to their land by Israeli and foreign supporters.

Rabbi Ascherman reacted to the restrictions of the army. “I believe that the army is angry, due to the sentence of the Supreme Court. Although some commanders have recognized that we are useful, others yield to the intense pressure from the settlers”, indicated the Jewish holy man to the BBC.

On the other hand Hernán Jeberovich, an army spokesman, clarified the story. “They can accompany the farmers, if they wish to. The army does not have objections. But a very small number of areas exist where there is a lot of friction and we ask that in those areas only the farmers enter. These are for security reasons and not of ideology “, he said to BBC World.

But Rabbi Arik Ascherman does not agree. “Exactly those small areas are precisely where they need us more. In some ways we recognize that we complicate things for the army, since in effect the settlers find our presence more annoying than the presence of the Palestinians “, responded Ascherman.

“But what the army is doing is to prevent the access us to more and more extensive areas.”

Between the Sword and the Wall

Several observers agree that the situation in the West Bank better regulated and the decision of the Israeli Supreme Court indicates good will. But on land located between the new separation barrier the 1967 border of the West Bank , better known as the Green Line, the situation is different.

Salah Al Teily depends totally on agriculture. He is 44 years old and has 6 children, lives in Tulkarem and must obtain permission to go on his land. “The wall separates me from my land and we were prohibited to work it, until the foreigners took part and they obtained permission for us. But the army serves to protect to the settlers and not us.”

And it is the intervention of the NGOs that is essential for these small farmers to move onto their land. “People need special permission to enter the land located between the separation barrier and the Green Line”, said Sylvia Piterman of the NGO Machsom Watch to BBC World.

“There are whole families whom they do not recognize own property that has been worked for generations; there are also 200,000 people considered “dangerous” to whom they do not grant access; or very large families who only receive access permission for few members of their family”, explained Piterman. “things have been more difficult than in previous years”.

And what happens to land that is inaccessible? “There is an old Ottoman law; if the land is not worked it stops being property of the individuals and goes into the hands of the state. And people are quite desperate about that “, asserted Sylvia Piterman.

Bil’in Cameraman Finally to be Released Tomorrow

by ISM media team, October 25th

A judge at Ofer military court ordered Bil’in cameraman Emad Bornat to be released tomorrow after almost 3 weeks in detention. Emad was seized in the village after a demonstration against the annexation wall on October 6th as he was filming Israeli forces. Whilst in the border police van Emad sustained serious head injuries requiring hospital treatment. A military judge ordered an inquiry into his injuries, casting doubt on the explanation of the border police that communications equipment fell on him.

Whilst in detention at Ofer military prison the Israeli military refused Emad medical treatment in defiance of the instructions of the court. Today a judge ordered the head of the military police to give account to the President of the Appelate Court as to why Emad didn’t receive the required treatment.

Emad will be released on 15,000 NIS bail and into house arrest in a neighbouring village to Bil’in. Emad, whose footage featured in the award-winning “Bil’in habibti” is charged with throwing stones and assaulting a border policeman. No date has been set yet for his trial.

For more information:
Mohammed Khatib, Bil’in Anti-wall Popular Committee: 054 557 3285
Attorney Gaby Laski: 054 441 8988
Israeli video-journalist Shai Polack: 054 533 3364
ISM Media office: 02 297 1824