Author: ISM Media - Page 216 - International Solidarity Movement

ACTION ALERT! Battle of breaking the chains: 25 days of hunger strike for Palestinian prisoners

15th September | Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network | Occupied Palestine
Palestinian prisoners in Israeli administrative detention are continuing their hunger strike to demand an end to imprisonment without charge or trial. Nidal Abu Aker, Ghassan Zawahreh, Shadi Ma’ali, Munir Abu Sharar,Badr al-Ruzza, Bilal Daoud Saifi and Suleiman Eskafi are all isolated by the Israeli prison administration in an attempt to break their strike, the “Battle of Breaking the Chains.”

Bilal Daoud Saifi, 26, is being denied medication for his chronic medical condition in retaliation for his participation in the hunger strike. He has been held in administrative detention since 28 February 2015 and his detention was renewed on 28 August 2015. He has been repeatedly arrested and detained for a total of five years. All of the strikers are being held in solitary confinement in prisons and not provided with hospital care despite the 5 original strikers now having been on hunger strike for 25 days.

Organizing and events in Palestine in solidarity with the strikers have escalated. In Dheisheh refugee camp near Bethlehem, where four of the strikers – Palestinian refugees denied their right to return – are residents, a permanent solidarity tent has been set up at the entrance to the camp. Every day the tent is full of supporters, including youth performing street theatre and leading a night march through the camp.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHQeIOPLShI&w=700&h=420

In Nablus and Al-Khalil, large rallies were held in solidarity with the striking prisoners and rallies are planned in Tulkarem and Gaza City for Monday and Tuesday. The Progressive Student Action Front at Bethlehem University organized a vigil to support the prisoners’ strike, distributing salt and water to students to inform them about the strike and the situation of the prisoners. Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike consume only salt and water. The PSAF at An-Najah University in Nablus also held an event to support the prisoners, distributing water and salt to students and speaking about the prisoners and their struggle.

Event in solidarity with the hunger strikers and against political inprisonment. Phote credit: Sofyan Abu Ras — Event in solidarity with the hunger strikers and against political inprisonment.
Phote credit: Sofyan Abu Ras

There are approximately 480 Palestinian prisoners currently held without trial under administrative detention, in which Israeli military court orders detention periods of one to six months on the basis of “secret files,” not accessible by detainees or their lawyers. These detention periods are indefinitely renewable. Administrative detention was initially introduced in Palestine by the British colonial mandate. Its use as a policy by the Israeli state contravenes the Geneva Conventions and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Palestinian prisoners like Khader Adnan and Mohammed Allan have gone on lengthy hunger strikes to win their release from administrative detention, and ending it is a long-time demand of the Palestinian prisoners’ movement.

Event in solidarity with the hunger strikers and against political inprisonment. Photo credit: http://samidoun.net/ — Event in solidarity with the hunger strikers and against political inprisonment.
Photo credit: http://samidoun.net/

Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network expresses its strongest solidarity with the striking prisoners, and calls for international actions, mobilizations and events to demand their freedom. Samidoun emphasizes that the Israeli occupation is fully responsible for the lives and health of the strikers. We cannot wait until these brave strugglers are facing death to act and demand not only their freedom as individuals, but the abolition of administrative detention – on the road to freeing every Palestinian prisoner held in Israeli occupation jails. It is not the case that Israeli military courts are any more legitimate, fair or acceptable than administrative detention – they are just as arbitrary, racist and illegitimate. But administrative detention is a weapon of mass terror used against the Palestinian people, and it is critical to bring this practice to an end. These Palestinian prisoners have put their bodies on the line in order to end administrative detention – and it is imperative that we act to support them. These prisoners’ struggle is not only about their individual freedom – it is part of their struggle for return and liberation for Palestine.

Take Action!

1. Sign on to this statement in support of the prisoners’ demand to End Administrative Detention. Organizational and individual endorsements are welcome – and organizational endorsements particularly critical – in support of the prisoners’ demands and their actions. Click here to sign or sign below:http://bit.ly/EndAdministrativeDetention

2. Send a solidarity statement. The support of people around the world helps to inform people about the struggle of Palestinian prisoners. It is a morale booster and helps to build political solidarity. Please send your solidarity statements to samidoun@samidoun.net. They will be published and sent directly to the prisoners.

3. Hold a solidarity one-day hunger strike in your area. Gather in a tent or central area, bring materials about Palestinian prisoners and hold a one-day solidarity strike to raise awareness and provide support for the struggle of the prisoners and the Palestinian cause. Please email us at samidoun@samidoun.net to inform us of your action – we will publicize and share news with the prisoners.

4. Protest at the Israeli consulate or embassy in your area. Bring posters and flyers about administrative detention and Palestinian hunger strikers and hold a protest, or join a protest with this important information. Hold a community event or discussion, or include this issue in your next event about Palestine and social justice. Please email us at samidoun@samidoun.net to inform us of your action – we will publicize and share news with the prisoners.

5. Contact political officials in your country – members of Parliament or Congress, or the Ministry/Department of Foreign Affairs or State – and demand that they cut aid and relations with Israel on the basis of its apartheid practices, its practice of colonialism, and its numerous violations of Palestinian rights including the systematic practice of administrative detention. Demand they pressure Israel to free the hunger strikers and end administrative detention.

6. Boycott, Divest and Sanction. Hold Israel accountable for its violations of international law. Don’t buy Israeli goods, and campaign to end investments in corporations that profit from the occupation. G4S, a global security corporation, is heavily involved in providing services to Israeli prisons that jail Palestinian political prisoners – there is a global call to boycott it. Palestinian political prisoners have issued a specific call urging action on G4S. Learn more about BDS at bdsmovement.net.

Original article: http://samidoun.net/2015/09/battle-of-breaking-the-chains-25-days-of-hunger-strike-for-palestinian-prisoners/

The women in Hebron cooperative

13th September 2015 | International Solidarity Movement, Al-Khalil Team | Hebron, Occupied Palestine

International Solidarity Movement human rights monitors spend the afternoon at the Women in Hebron embroidery cooperative where Palestinian women are empowering themselves and persisting with grace in a colourful and beautiful way in a community space amidst the horror of the ongoing military occupation of their home.

wih — Women in Hebron shop in the old city of Hebron

Silverware clinks on plates, numerous excited voices float above the large trays of food laid out and loud bursts of laughter punctuate most bites of food. We are in the colorful and warm ‘Women in Hebron’ embroidery cooperative space in the village of Idna in the Hebron district. And we are surrounded by the women who keep the business running and the spirit of community and empowerment nearly bursting the center at its very seams.

From the worn hands of an elderly woman rushing her crease-patterned hands through the weaving of a carpet stretching the length of the cooperative itself to the bright eyes of 14 year old Yafa Slemiah whose mother founded Women in Hebron, at this cooperative, there is space for everyone.

“We welcome everyone here. People from all over the world have come to work with us. We open our home to them; there we have an entire floor dedicated for volunteers, three rooms and three bathrooms, they have free food and can travel with us. …And we teach them embroidery.”

Palestinian women int he West Bank — Palestinian woman in the cooperative creating a carpet by hand.

From humble beginnings in 2005, the cooperative itself now boasts a beautiful shop in the souq. The shop is the only woman-run establishment in Hebron and it is rare to pass the richly colorful, craft-filled space without coming in contact with the welcoming smile of Leila, the shop owner, Yafa’s aunt and sister of Women in Hebron’s director, Nawal Slemiah.

Currently, Nawal is traveling through America promoting the cooperative, thus her enthusiastic and kind daughter sits with us as both translator and story teller- conveying what Women in Hebron means to those who are a part of it, creating breathtaking bead-work and embroidered traditional Palestinian dresses for weddings and events, holidays and parties.

23 year old Haneen sits beside Yafa, her work with the cooperative began four years ago. “My mom was sick, pregnant with twins and already had twins. I had to leave school in the sixth grade to care for her. There was no work for a woman who is uneducated. But I knew how to embroider and here I can teach other women.”

And like all other elements of life in the occupied territories, the work of Women in Hebron and Leila’s shop in the souq do not go untouched by the cruelty of their occupiers. “Shops in Hebron gets lots of water from the rain because the soldiers close the gates separating the settlers from the old city. Our area floods so the settlers can stay dry.” This was the reality this past April in Hebron when heavy rains flooded the souq to staggering chest level heights, destroying shelf-fulls of embroidery Leila made by hand at the cooperative to sell at market.

Yafa’s frustration is clear, “Can you imagine making items by hand for months? Months. Things that take days to transport to the shop, only to have it flooded out so people who stole your land can stay dry?” Another way the occupation effects the cooperative is by deporting volunteers with Arabic names or those who come stating that they are visiting the West Bank to do embroidery work. “The volunteers have to lie and say they are visiting Tel Aviv or they do not get through at the airport.”

For those who do get in, they join a group of women dedicated to keeping Palestine alive. Haneen describes her commitment to her culture and keeping resistance alive, creatively so, “It’s very… tradition is very important in Palestine. It is very important that people know about what is happening in Palestine.

20150912_133035 — Hand-making carpet in the traditional Palestinian way.

Through our work, people will know about traditional Palestinian culture. They will come to know the situation here. We will let people know we are not terrorists. I can help make a difference and then I can teach embroidery to my daughters.”

Isma has been at the cooperative for three years. At 24, with limited education, Isma’s options were few. “Not only do uneducated women have a difficult time finding work, but also the occupation limits us severely. We are unable to travel.

We have no airport. If we want to go anywhere or do anything, we must go through Israel to do it and they do not want to help us.” Nawal welcomed Isma into the cooperative, allowing her to cook and clean while learning the machines, she is now one of the women who train the volunteers who come in.

20150912_124409 — Handmade small bag. Front: Men can do something

To be a volunteer with the cooperative, you are not only welcomed into Nawal’s home, you learn how to run the website, answer the emails, process the sales- the entire business side of the cooperative is shared alongside the teaching of the handcrafting. They also have a colorful nursery within the cooperative so women with children can bring them along as they work.

After lunch, Yafa and the others walk us through a room with shelves made bright by their wares. Shelf after shelf houses beaded wallets, purses, scarves and even bookmarks that can be personalized, all kaleidoscopic, all made by the hands of those who are economically and socially strangled by an occupation that seeks to end them- all binds broken in the process of free creation. One of the women laughs and holds up a beaded wallet that says “Women can do anything.” She then turns it over, “Men can do something.”

20150912_124359 — Handmade small bag. Back: Women can do anything

Before leaving them to their work, we sit with Yafa a few more moments. She describes the world she knows, “The occupation has taken over everyone’s lives. At this moment, if you walked outside and didn’t see a soldier you would wonder why not. The women working here all have to worry about the occupation when they consider each day they spend at the cooperative. ‘What if I’m not home and the soldiers raid my home? What if I’m gone too long?’ Occupation is always the first thing to think about. In Palestine this is normal. She can die. I can die. The soldiers can kill us and the people may talk about it for one day, one week, but here this is normal life. During the time the world hears about a Palestinian getting killed, like the 18 month old baby the settlers burned to death recently, three more Palestinians are killed. The occupation makes our lives gross.”

The occupation doesn’t only entail soldier harassment and collective punishments enacted against Palestinians as a whole. Settler violence is a daily and worsening issue. “They are building a fence above our homes now because the settlers throw eggs down on us. They throw rocks. When we are at home in the middle of the night, we do not wear our hijabs, only to have male settlers jump into our homes in the middle of the night and see us this way before running out again. This can never happen for ‘normal’ people. You do not see this in Europe or anywhere else. So this is very different for us.”

20150912_114455 — Some of the handmade products made by Women in Hebron.

With the occupation ‘coming first,’ the all-encompassing hurdle to be considered by the people who are subjugated and oppressed by it, the Women in Hebron are utilizing a rich and generational tradition to perpetuate their culture and their resistance to a system who would sooner end their lives than to better them.

They are dichotomous existences these women lead of both fighting oppressive social and power structures whilst building and creating a world where all voices are heard, where they see more friends in a day than they see soldiers, where every facet of their lives isn’t stained with the awful truth of a military occupation and near seven decade ethnic cleansing.

The women we share this afternoon with are making more with their hands than what meets the eye. They are molding an empowering path for Palestinian women, one more elaborate- and accessible- with each passing day.

Read more about the cooperative and buy products made by Women in Hebron here.

International arrested in al-Khalil and banned from part of the city

12th September 2015 | International Solidarity Movement, Al-Khalil Team | Hebron, occupied Palestine

Sunday night an international human rights observer was arrested by Israeli forces on bogus charges in al-Khalil (Hebron) in occupied Palestine.
The activist was detained by Israeli soldiers when leaving a house in the Tel Rumeida neighbourhood of al-Khalil. Only a few minutes later, a reinforcement of another group of about 7 soldiers arrived. The only explanation provided by the soldiers in English to the two volunteers, who do not speak any Hebrew, was that they had to wait for the police to arrive for an explanation on the detention.
When the police arrived, the police-man immediately took the passport of one of the internationals, not even asking to see the other person’s passport. As the police-man himself did not speak any English, a soldier had to translate the charges to the volunteer and explain to her, that she had to come to the police station. The soldier lawlessly accusing the international was later present at all times at the police station except for interrogation.

Soldiers taking international in the police car Photo credit: Human Rights Defenders — Soldiers taking international in the police car
Photo credit: Human Rights Defenders

The international was released only on the condition of signing a paper banning her from the ‘Jewish part’ of the city and passing through any checkpoint for a week. An explanation on what exactly that means was not given by the Israeli forces, who tried to ascertain the activist that she would be allowed back to move freely in al-Khalil on Saturday morning, an obvious attempt to have a reason to legally arrest her on violating the conditions of the seven-day period.
This is clearly intended to impede her work as a human rights observer, and tries to stop her from documenting and reporting on violence against Palestinians and violations of human rights and international law by Israeli forces. In al-Khalil (Hebron), a ctiy often dubbed a microcosmos of the occupation with illegal settlements right in the heart of the city, violence against Palestinians both by settlers and soldiers is rampant. Human Rights organisations are documenting and reporting on daily incidents to reveal the impact of the military occupation in Palestine and to raise awareness.

Soldiers and police in Tel Rumeida Photo credit: Human Rights Defenders — Soldiers and police in Tel Rumeida
Photo credit: Human Rights Defenders

Vittorio Fera free: ‘People need to open their blind eye!’

11th September 2015 | International Solidarity Movement, Al-Khalil Team | Hebron, occupied Palestine

Vittorio Fera was arrested on 28^th August 2015 at a peaceful demonstration in Nabi Saleh in occupied Palestine. He was beaten up several times by Israeli soldiers during and after his arrest and they only handed him over to the Israeli police after repeated requests by his lawyer to do so.

Israeli soldiers accused him of attacking them and throwing stones – claims completely unfounded, as he was documenting the violent arrest of Mohammed Tamimi. The decision on the case was postponed till Monday the 31^st of August, where the court released him on a 3.000 shekel bill after 3 days in prison, and the condition to have yet another court on Tuesday the 8^th September. Finally, the court took the decision to cancel this court date and relinquish the case.

With no evidence ever submitted to prove any of the claims by Israeli soldiers on the reason of Vittorio’s arrest, this is just the final step in the farce of ‘justice’ provided by the Israeli system. With the final court hearing just dropped, Vittorio’s innocence in all charges can not be officially determined by the court. The soldiers responsible for his wrongful arrest and beating him will not face any consequences on their illegal and immoral behaviour and will be free to continue as if nothing ever happened.

Vittorio’s statement on his case and the media attention:

“When things like this happen to an international, the media immediately starts to spread the news as if it’s an extraordinary case. People need to open their blind eye because these kind of things happen on a daily basis in Palestinian’s everyday lives. We need the same attention and condemnation of these acts of violence, brutality and illegal activity by the Israeli government.

Whereas an international can be deported or declared not guilty and that’s just it, for Palestinians on the other hand, even without any evidence, they can be put in administrative detention and kept locked up in a prison for years without the right to a due process.”

MAHMOUD NASSER IS FREE ! THANK YOU !

LAST UPDATE

30/09/2015

Thank you !

We have received the wonderful news that Mahmoud Nasser has been released from Ofer, the Israeli military occupation prison near Ramallah, yesterday night!
Together with his family they celebrated his release on bail and we are all very grateful to all supporters and donators for their contribute!!

Carry on the struggle for the liberation of palestinian political prisoners!

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Dear friends,

Due to technical problems the special Facebook event for the campaign in support of Mahmoud Nasser and all Palestinian political prisoners has been deleted.

We will continue to communicate updates on Mahmoud’s situation using the relevant hashtags.

So far we seem to have raised enough money and hope that Mahmoud Nasser will be released from prison soon!

#FreeMahmoud #FreeAllPoliticalPrisoners #EndOccupation

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Free all political prisoners and end the military occupation of Palestine!
Mahmoud Nasser, a 24-year-old Palestinian from the village of Beitunia, was arrested after 150 soldiers raided his house in the night of 16 July 2015. He was charged with ‘posing a security threat to Israel.’ However, during the appeal hearing, the military judge ruled that there is not enough evidence that supports Mahmoud’s continuing detention or conviction.

Outrageously so, innocence does not equal immediate release under Israeli military law. Instead, an exorbitant bail of 15.000 New Israeli Shekels is impositioned (around €3430 / $3830). An amount that the family of Mahmoud is unable to pay.

Palestinians from the occupied territories are prosecuted under military law. This practice leads to grave violations of basic human rights inside prisons and allows Israel to control the daily life and movement of Palestinians en masse. Military law permits the imposition of exorbitant bails even when it has been ruled that there is not enough evidence to support the detainment or conviction.

Mahmoud Nasser is a clear victim of this illegal and unjust system.

Take action!
Take a stand against the occupation, the illegal application of military law in Palestine and in support of all Palestinian political prisoners.

Donate now to help pay the bail and free Mahmoud Nasser. Any amount will help and is greatly appreciated by his family!

How to donate
The easiest way to donate is via PayPal.
Please visit https://palsolidarity.org/donate/ and tick the box ‘Free Mahmoud Nasser’.

Should you not be able to use PayPal, it is possible to directly transfer your donation to the bank account of ISM. You will need the following details:

Account holder: ISMSVERIGE
Account number: 9746647313
IBAN: SE65 8000 0842 0297 4664 7313
BIC: SWEDSESS
Name of the bank: Swedbank

Please note that it is important to reference ‘Free Mahmoud Nasser’ with your transfer.

If you are based in Palestine or Israel, you may wish to transfer the donation directly to the account of the family to avoid losing money on transfer and conversion costs. Therefore it is possible to send your donation to Ahmad Nasser, the brother of Mahmoud. You will need the following details:

Account holder: Ahmad Sameer Ahmad Nasser
Name of the bank: Bank Of Palestine
Address: Rukab Street, Ramallah- Palestine
Account number: 2228092

Please note that we strongly recommend those based outside Palestine/Israel to donate to ISM via Paypal or a direct bank transfer to ISM. This allows us to collect the total amount of donations and subsequently make one single transfer to the family’s bank account. This minimises the costs caused by international transfers and currency conversion rates.

In case of further queries, please direct them to freemahmoudnow@gmail.com.

Updates:
8 September: The International Solidarity Movement has generously donated 2000 New Israeli Shekel in support of Mahmoud Nasser.
10 September: The second part of the extremely strict bail conditions has been met: to find two Israeli civilians who can guarantee 15.000 New Israeli Shekel each and demonstrate a monthly income of 5000 Shekel. This is amazing news!

This means we have 13.000 Shekel more to go before we can pay the bail. Not a small amount, but together we can go a long way!

19 September: Next to the generous donations of all of you, friends of Ahmad and Mahmoud in Palestine and beyond, ISM Sweden has now also donated an amazing amount of 3000 Shekel.YES, we reached the 10.000 Shekel!

We are not there yet, another 5000 to go. This should be doable, right?! This amount equals to £830 / €1140 / $1290. We need 100 persons to donate £8,30/ €11,40 / $12,90.

Please continue to spread the campaign and to consider making a small or large contribution. Together we can make this happen – lets make sure to go achieve our goal of 15.000 Shekel – it is within reach!

The illegal arrest and exorbitant bail of Mahmoud Nasser
On Thursday, 16th of July 2015 at around 4:00 am Israeli Occupation Forces raided the house of Mahmoud Nasser and his family in Beitunia, occupied Palestine. More than 150 soldiers, border police and intelligence service officers surrounded the neighbourhood and stormed into the house while the family was fast asleep. Mahmoud Nasser was subsequently arrested without being shown an official arrest order.

After being taken to the military prison in Ofer, Mahmoud was ordered to appear in court and charges were levelled against him stating he poses a security threat to Israel. However, the evidence presented by the military prosecution does not at all support the charges. Consequently the judge ruled that there is not enough evidence to continue Mahmoud’s detention nor will it support a future conviction.

Outrageously so, under military law, innocence does not equal immediate release. On the contrary, the military judge ruled that a bail amount of 15.000 New Israeli Shekel (around €3430 / $3830) should be paid before Mahmoud Nasser is to be released. This is an exorbitant bail amount which puts the family under increased financial and psychological pressure. If the bail is not paid, Mahmoud will stay imprisoned for a maximum of eighteen months – a period that would continue to be subject of discussion as the military judge may extend this period even after a specific time limit is set in the case of conviction.

The illegality of military law in occupied Palestine
Under international law it is illegal to acquire land by force, which is what happened during the 1948 and 1967 wars. These wars led to the creation of Israel and subsequently enabled it to annex more land. While the military occupation is internationally considered to be illegal, Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza are nevertheless prosecuted under Israeli military law.

Military prosecution occurs whenever a Palestinian is considered to pose a security threat to the Israeli state. However, what constitutes ‘a security threat’ is interpreted extremely broadly. A variety of actions is criminalized, including non-violent political and cultural expressions, such as putting up posters, writing political slogans, carrying a Palestinian flag or attending a demonstration. It then comes at no surprise that Amnesty International reported in 2002 that “in light of the large number of those arrested and detained for a short time with very little interrogation, and the consistent use of degrading treatment, Amnesty International is concerned that the aim of the large-scale arrests may have been to collectively punish and to degrade and humiliate Palestinians”.

The implementation of collective punishment through mass incarceration and detention continues until today. Addameer, the Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, reports that as of July 2015 5700 Palestinians are inside Israeli prisons. This illustrates that the accusation of posing a security threat to Israel is applied to control everyday movement and enables mass detention of Palestinians.

To protest against this inhumane treatment and unjust and illegal system, Palestinian prisoners have taken the radical step to go on hunger strike. To resist the illegal military rule is a timely action as the Israeli Knesset passed a controversial bill to legalize force-feeding of Palestinian hunger strikers on 30 July 2015. Force-feeding is considered by international and medical organisations as a clear violation of prisoners’ human rights. Recently the cases of hunger strikers Khader Adnan and Mohammed Allan gained international attention. However, there are many more prisoners currently on hunger strike. They organise around concrete demands to improve the poor living standards inside the occupation prisons and are calling for an end to administrative detention.

Take action!
Donate now to free Mahmoud Nasser and support all political prisoners in their struggle for liberation!

Stay involved and receive updates!
Follow the campaign on Facebook and ISM on Twitter #FreeMahmoud #FreeAllPoliticalPrisoners #EndOccupation

Useful resources:
http://www.addameer.org/ – Palestinian Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association
http://www.alhaq.org/ – Palestinian Human Rights Organisation
http://samidoun.net/ – Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network, US-based
https://corporatewatch.org/sites/default/files/G4S_profile_Sep12.pdf – Corporate Watch, UK-based independent research group
http://www.btselem.org/ – Israeli Information Centre for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories
http://www.alternativenews.org/english/ – Alternative Information Centre, a joint Palestinian-Israeli organisation to promote justice, equality and peace for Palestinians and Israelis
http://visualizingpalestine.org/visuals/administrative-detention – a guide to administrative detention by Visualizing Palestine
https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde15/074/2002/en/ – ‘Israel and the Occupied Territories: Mass detention in cruel, inhuman and degrading conditions’, Amnesty International report, May 2002
Israel Apartheid. A beginners guide – accessible book by Ben White in which he explains the origins of Israel, the colonisation of Palestine since 1948 and examines the current structure of Israeli Apartheid. The book is rooted in White’s extensive on-the-ground experience in the region and includes short testimonies by Palestinians.