On August 27, 2006, Hakim Ersan, a 12 year old boy from the village of Beit Fourik near Nablus, was shot by an Israeli colonist from the Aitmar settlement near his home. Hakim was playing with two friends, ages 8-9, when the boys spotted 3 Israeli colonists approaching them. The boys began to run away, and Hakim tripped and fell; when he stood up, the colonist man, aged approximately 40, shot him through his lower back. The bullet exited through his upper groin area, and the younger boys carried him to his home. Hakim is currently in critical condition and awaiting surgery at Raffidia Hospital in Nablus; the extent of damage to his internal organs is yet undetermined.
Colonist violence is nothing new for Beit Fourik; four years ago, an elderly man was farming his land when colonists attacked him and beat him to death with a stone.
This afternoon, peace activists from the International Solidarity Movement joined Palestinians, Israelis, and international supporters from other organizations to picket the visit to Ramallah of Kofi Annan, Secretary General of the United Nations. Mr Annan was in the West Bank today to meet Mahmoud Abbas, President of the Palestinian Authority (PA).
The demonstration began at 1.30pm at the Muqata, headquarters of the PA. Activists brought banners and placards, written in Arabic, Hebrew and English, with slogans including “Stop Land Theft”, “Scotland Against The Wall” and “Enforce Resolution 242”. A large banner included illustrations of the illegal partition wall, currently under construction in the West Bank, and the ongoing destruction of olive trees (by the Israeli Government) which provide livelihoods for many Palestinians.
The central purpose of the picket was to emphasize the impact of the Israeli Government’s policies upon the lives of people living in the occupied West Bank, with particular reference to the partition wall, which is preventing ordinary Palestinians from accessing their farmland, jobs and schools, and has divided families. Amongst the demonstrators were people from Bil’in, a village to the West of Ramallah, where 60% of the villager’s farmland has been cut off from the village by the wall, and where regular non-violent demonstrations are held in protest at the erection of the wall.
Activists hoped to remind Mr Annan that the Israeli Government has still not complied with a raft of UN resolutions, nor has it moved following last year’s ruling, by the International Court of Justice in The Hague, which confirmed that the erection of the partition wall is illegal under international law.
Prior to beginning formal talks, both Mr Annan and Mr Abbas came outside to briefly meet demonstrators. Mr Annan listened to the concerns of the gathered villagers and activists, and confirmed that these matters would be discussed in talks today.
On Saturday August 26th, at approximately 12 noon, a Palestinian family in Tel Rumeida, (in the Israeli controlled H2 district of Hebron) noticed a group of settler boys setting fire to the dry grass in front of their home. This land contains many olive trees and settlers have attempted to burn down these trees on many occasions by starting grass fires. The family put the fire out with water but the kids returned and started a fire which spread to the center of a large olive tree. By the time the family noticed, the fire was so hot that they could not put it out by themselves. Phone requests to the DCO (District Command Office of the military) to allow firefighters from the Palestinian municipality of Hebron to enter into H2 to put the fire out were denied.
The family tried to solicit the help of soldiers who poured a white, firefighting powder on the burning tree. This attempt at putting the fire out was not successful and eventually the whole tree was destroyed. Soldiers attempted to charge the family 600 shekels ($135) for the firefighting powder and the family refused. The soldiers threatened to come back and confiscate the family’s television is they refused to pay.
In addition, settlers set the ground on fire in another location next to this same family’s house. No olive trees were destroyed in this fire.
Early Wednesday morning Palestine solidarity activists blockaded the Israeli company Carmel Agrexco’s British headquarters. This was part of a non-violent protest against recurrent breaches of human rights and international law in the Israeli occupied territories of Palestine.
Carmel is complicit in war crimes under the International Criminal Court Act 2001 (ICC Act). They import fresh produce originating from illegal Israeli settlements in the Occupied Territories.
The action follows a legal warning letter to Carmel stating clearly why they are in breach of the law.
The action took place at Agrexco UK, Swallowfield Way, Hayes, Middlesex, Israel’s largest importer of agricultural produce into the European Union. It is 50% Israeli state owned.
Protestors used wire fencing and bicycle D-Locks in a well planned blockade at the two entrances to the building.
Before taking part in the blockade, many of the protesters had witnessed first hand the suffering of Palestinians under Israeli military occupation.
This follows on from an action of 11th November 2004, when seven Palestine-Solidarity protesters from London and Brighton were arrested after taking part in a non-violent blockade outside the same company.
Last September a Judge ruled that Agrexco (UK) must prove that their business is lawful. The acquittal of the seven activists before they were able to present their defence meant that the court did not have to rule on the legalityof Agrexco-Carmel’s involvement in the supply of produce from illegal settlements in the occupied territories.
Today’s blockade aims to draw attention to this company’s complicity, in murder, theft and damage of occupied land, collective punishment, apartheid and ethnic cleansing, and other breaches of International Law.
August 29th, 2006 in the town of Zububa in the Jenin region, Israeli soldiers are currently destroying large swaths of Palestinian olive groves. The attacks began around 7:00 in the morning with American-made Caterpillar armoured bulldozers, and is currently ongoing.
According to Mohammad, a resident of Zububa, the tress being destroyed are in an area, 2km in length and 100km in width. This land amounts to the total area owned by the town. The farmers who have repeatedly tried to access their fields have been beaten and fired upon by Israeli forces. The residents of Zububa have argued that the destruction of their fields serves no security purposes, because the land is on the Palestinian side of the Annexation Wall.
