Author: ISM Media

Update: Voices of Resistance

For Media: We have English (as well as other languages) speaking people in Gaza wishing for their voices to be heard. To arrange for interviews please contact: palreports@gmail.com

Haidar Eid, professor (Tel Al Hawa, Gaza)

”On November 19th, while death and destruction was still pouring down on Gaza I  wrote: “Gaza 2009 was the Sharpeville and Guernica of Palestine. Gaza 2012 is Palestine’s Soweto 1976, that will lead inexorably to implementation of the Right of Return and the end of ALL racist solutions; the beginning of the end of occupation, colonization and Apartheid in Palestine! ” This is what has happened. History has repeat itself, but not as a tragedy this time: 1976 witnessed the beginning of the end of Apartheid in South Africa; 2012 will be the turning point that will lead to the end of Apartheid in Palestine!

Ola Anan (West of Gaza City)

‘’Life is beginning to go back into normal life, student are back to school today, I can’t imagine how hard it feels to go back to the school and find out your friends was killed during the war. People begin to go out of the street to see the destroyed places. Land marks of the city are destroyed, they compare how the things are seems different, seems that we needs a lot of time to realize what really happened, how much we have lost.’’

Muhsen Abu Ramadan (the chairman of the steering committee of PNGO in Gaza)

“One of the factors that helped Palestinians achieve their victory are the solidarity groups and activists who demonstrated all over the world and helped spread a message  reflecting the international humanitarian values based on human rights and peoples rights to self determination.”

Maram Humaid (student in Gaza Strip)

”It’s the third day after the attack of Israel on Gaza. Normal life is not easier. You can see activists publishing photos on twitter. We, students, activists, boys and girls practice our life normally, there is no wounding, no fire, it is getting normal. Many people are thinking to have fun, but we passed too difficult period and it is hard to do that. We meet and talk about this war, our memories, what is going on and how we are. I have a list of people I want to ask how they are, to see who is secure.”

Rushdi Sarraj (photographer in Gaza strip)

‘’8-days of the aggression on Gaza Strip passed like ages. We never slept or found a way to rest. The sound of bombing and the smell of death lingered everywhere. But we continued our media work without fear  and showed the world the hidden face of the Israeli crimes. Targeting the media was  the highest priority of the occupation, I lost more than one of my colleagues among the dead and wounded.’’

Jaber Abu Regaleh (farmer from Farahin near the border of Gaza in the former buffer zone)

“We are celebrating. Every one, young men, young women, old people, we are all outside walking on our land along the border. I am near the fence now. There is ten meters between me and the Israeli jeep. We have a lot of work to do to repair the destruction caused by the occupation but we will till the land and plant it and renew it to be the agricultural land that it used to be. This is better than a holiday for us.”

Call for simultaneous solidarity action: 28 November to 1 December 2012

24th November 2012 | World Social Forum Free Palestine

See: www.wsfpalestine.net

From 28 November through 1 December, thousands of activists, organizers, youth, faith-based groups, trade unions, musicians, academics, and more will converge on Porto Alegre, Brazil for the first ever World Social Forum dedicated exclusively to Palestine.

For those who are unable to join us in Brazil, the World Social Forum Free Palestine WSF-FP calls for simultaneous protests, creative actions and media efforts worldwide to call attention to the goals and strategies that will be discussed and promoted during this Forum.

The World Social Forum Free Palestine is an expression of the human instinct to unite for justice and freedom and an echo of the World Social Forum’s opposition to neo-liberal hegemony, colonialism, and racism through struggles for social, political and economic alternatives to promote justice, equality, and the sovereignty of peoples.

The WSF-FP will be a global encounter of broad-based popular and civil society mobilizations from around the world. It aims to:

1. Show the strength of solidarity with the calls of the Palestinian people and the diversity of initiatives and actions aimed at promoting justice and peace in the region.

2. Create effective actions to ensure Palestinian self-determination, the creation of a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, and the fulfillment of human rights and international law, by:

a. Ending Israeli occupation and colonization of all Arab lands and dismantling the Wall;

b. Ensuring the fundamental rights of the Arab-Palestinian citizens of Israel to full equality; and

c. Implementing, protecting, and promoting the rights of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and properties as stipulated in UN resolution 194.

3. Be a space for discussion, exchange of ideas, strategizing, and planning in order to improve the structure of solidarity.

How to be part of the WSF Free Palestine Extended?

The World Social Forum Free Palestine is calling for extended global activities in solidarity with the historic occurrence in Brazil. In order to be part of the WSF Free Palestine effort, we ask you to:

– Use the WSF-FP logo during the event and in the promotional material

– Ensure your activity is consistent with the WSF-FP Reference Document

– Inform us of your activity at extended@wsfpalestine.net and prensa@wsfpalestine.net ahead of time to help promote it globally

– Send us photos, videos of your activity to display them in Porto Alegre.

During the WSF Free Palestine, let’s all use the Twitter hashtag #wsfpalestine to promote our actions and don’t forget to follow @WSFPalestine to follow the action as it unfolds!

Some ideas for actions are:

1. Organize a visible and creative protest, flash mob or action that calls attention to the goals of the WSF Free Palestine and the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people. Such actions can coincide with ongoing, pre-existing campaigns in your area;

2. Prepare outreach meetings, events or media initiatives that bring attention to the WSF-FP;

3. Use the momentum of the WSF-FP as a launching pad for new campaigns and to bring the message of Palestinian self-determination, freedom and justice to new audiences;

4. Call on governments to pay attention to the WSF-FP and respect the demands of Palestinian civil society.

5. Publish statements by well-known personalities in support of the WSF Free Palestine and the demands of Palestinian civil society summarized in the Reference Document.

Be a part of the WSF Free Palestine wherever you are: 28 November to 1 December 2012!

Israeli and U.S. forces displace villagers from homes for military training in the Jordan Valley

By Brandi Jackson

13th November 2012 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank

On November 11th Palestinians from the Jordan Valley villages of AelRaesAhemer, AelMaleh, and Ael Meta, were awoken by Israeli occupation forces at 6:00 AM and forced to leave their homes and villages because the military was to use the area for military training.

The villages are part of Area C in the West Bank, and therefore are under full Israeli civil and security control. Palestinians in Area C, which covers over 60% of the West Bank, are practically forbidden to build on their own property; while neighboring illegal settlements continue to expand. The villages undergo constant attacks and threats from either the army or settlers, including home demolitions, physical beatings, destruction of property, etc.

U.S. Forces have recently arrived in Israel and the West Bank to conduct a joint military exercise simulating a war in the Middle East that would require the U.S. to intervene. The drill is considered to be the largest joint military exercise carried out by the two countries, and is severely affecting the lives of Palestinian villagers throughout the West Bank. It also violates Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention which states that “Individual or mass forcible transfers, as well as deportations of protected persons from occupied territory to the territory of the Occupying Power or to that of any other country, occupied or not, are prohibited, regardless of their motive.”

After Israeli occupation forces displaced the villagers out of their homes, they then began to practice shooting tanks, missiles, and artillery into the areas of the villages throughout the day.

According to the information we received from several people, the villagers will be able to return to their homes at 6:00 PM. Some may have to go through this process every day for up to two months, until the Israeli and U.S. Forces are finished with their joint military exercise. “The Military told us that we are not allowed to return to our homes at all. We don´t know what to expect,” explained a Palestinian.

Brandi Jackson is a volunteer with the International Solidarity Movement (name has been changed)

Palestinian youth attacked in Hebron – 1 man in critical condition

18th Novemeber 2012 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank

 

Soldiers in Hebron

Update:  Hamdi Alfalah, 22, shot and killed today in Hebron.

Ibrahim Abu Eisheh, a Palestinian youth was hit in the head by a tear gas canister at around six in the afternoon. He is in critical condition at a hospital and is currently undergoing surgery.
For the third consecutive day in Hebron there has been a large amount of Palestinian resistance in the old city against the Israeli occupying forces. Two streets in particular were hardest hit by the conflict.
One being one of the main streets in the souq where most of the fresh produce is sold in the city. The other road intersects the market street and runs north of the military gate that is used for entry during Saturday settler tours. This area is known as Bab Baladia and was the main fighting ground for the shabab; which is the name for young Palestinian males.
Today not only were multiple tires burned but a couch was set aflame. Firecrackers are also a favorite for these demonstrations, which briefly give the tiring struggle a whimsical edge.
Though rocks are obviously dangerous when used as projectiles it’s extremely rare that one gets close enough to the soldiers to be considered dangerous, plus they have armor and padding.
The Israeli army responds to the relatively symbolic acts with rubber coated steel bullets and tear gas canisters that are shot at high speeds from their machine guns. Yet apparently this isn’t enough to combat untrained civilians that are predominantly in their teens. A skunk water truck came out of the Israeli installation and went into H1, which according to the Oslo accords is supposed to be in full Palestinian control.
The disgusting material was sprayed into the food market and the Palestinian homes that reside above it. Israeli army personnel have also been trying to break into private residences so as to gain access to the roof for tactical advantage. At one point six border police raided a building, as they shut the front entrance door other border on the outside broke off the handle so nobody else could enter. There have also been several detainments of Palestinian youth that are given no reason as to why they are held while they are blindfolded and cuffed.
All of this activity inevitably ends up in injuries, today was certainly no exception.

By Team Khalil

Settlers set mosque on fire in Urif, West Bank

by Vincent Redheart and Anas Green

19th November 2012 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank

Today, Monday 19 of November at around 4 am, a bunch of settlers from the illegal settlement of Yitzhar set a mosque in the village of Urif on fire. The door has been damaged and the prayer mats were severely burned. After a few hours Israeli soldiers reached the area causing several clashes with the inhabitants who appeared nervous due to the attack. The soldiers shot a huge amount of tear-gas and sound bombs at the residents.
The village of Urif has been attacked many times in similar ways by the illegal settlement of Yitzhar. This year, on 29th April, mask-wearing settlers invaded the village supported by Israeli soldiers who used tear-gas, sound bombs and live ammunitions. Another event happened on 26th May when armed settlers burned cultivated fields, threw stones and shot live ammunition against the Palestinian people, one of whom was injured in the abdomen.
The illegal settlement of Yitzhar is responsible of countless attacks against surrounding villages: not only Urif but also Burin and Asira al-Qabaliya suffered similar attacks.
Urif is a Palestinian town near Nablus in the northern occupied West Bank, located thirteen kilometres South of Nablus. The town has a population of just under 3000 inhabitants and is overlooked by the illegal Israeli settlement of Yitzhar.

The front of the mosque is seen here with scorch marks near the door
The prayer mats are seen here, scorched by flames

 

Vincent Redheart and Anas Green are volunteers with the International Solidarity Movement (names have been changed)