Farmland exploited for Israeli military exercises

By Alex

22 May 2012 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank

Monday the 21 of May is the third day in a row of Israeli military exercises in and around the small Palestinian village of Khirbet Atwayel outside Nablus. These exercises prevent the farmers from working on their lands and force the villagers to sleep under the sound of heavy shelling with the constant presence of soldiers.

Khirbet Atweyel is a village located on the slopes West of the Jordan valley. The 18 families that reside there are almost exclusively farmers and have been victims to the actions of the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) for a long time.

Every month, Israeli soldiers arrive, erect tents, and stay for a few days while they receive various kinds of military training. These include the shooting of live rounds, rocket missiles, and other heavy artillery. During these days, the farmers are denied entry to their own lands and can only stand aside and watch while soldiers drive their jeeps and other vehicles over the fields.

Volunteers with the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), together with members of the municipality of the nearby town of Aqraba, approached the village on Monday, May 21.

“As usual, the soldiers stop their activities when they see internationals in the village. Only ten minutes ago they were shooting rockets on the hills a couple of hundred meters from the town’s houses,” Basem, the mayor of Khirbet Atwayel says.

Tents erected by the Israeli military to house soldiers during military training.

Later, whilst two ISM activists attempted to approach the field in order to better photograph the military tents, Israeli soldiers opened fire nearby. The activists were forced to turn around and flee the way they came. A rocket was fired on an adjacent hill, creating an ear piercing bang.

“These rockets are the kind of weapons they usually shoot at night. If you come here between 10-11 p.m. you will find they shoot dozens, making it impossible to sleep,” Basem says.

The military training, however, is only one of many aspects of oppression that the people of Khirbet Atwayel suffer on a daily basis. Like many other villages in the Jordan valley, Khirbet Atwayel is in Area C. It is under full Israeli civil and military control. One result is that the villagers are not allowed to have wells or water cisterns. Instead, they are forced to buy water from Aqraba and transport it in tanks to their houses. This makes the basic necessity of water enormously expensive. Irrigation of crops has become impossible and farmers are left to hope that the winter will bring enough rain.

When asked for his thoughts about the future of his village, Basem replied, “the occupiers are obviously trying to get rid of us, but we were born in this village and this land has been within our families for generations. We will never leave and give up what is rightfully ours.”

Alex is a volunteer with the International Solidarity Movement (name has been changed).

Burin: arbitrary arrests continue

By Maria Erdely

22 May 2012 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank

Castro Risaq was arrested on the night of the May 1 in Burin, a village just 7 kilometres south west of Nablus. The Israeli military arrived at 1 a.m. demanding Castro. Waking up the family, they barged through the front door. The 38 year old man was arrested and blindfolded without an opportunity to get dressed. His wife and 6 children were forced to watch as the head of the family was taken away without explanation. No charges have been pressed yet. The soldiers who arrested him stated only, “this is our job.”

Castro was told that he would have a hearing within 3 days. This date has since has been postponed to the end of the month.

Castro and Salam Risaq’s three sons

Castro holds both a Palestinian and British passport. He lived in the United Kingdom for a period of 7 months before he was called back to Palestine to stay with his ill mother. He intended to pass on his UK citizenship to his to eldest daughters, 15 and 18, but did not have the opportunity to do so before being arrested.

Upon Castro’s arrest, his wife, Salam Risaq, contacted the British Embassy. Their response was simply that they are unable to help.

The Risaq family has so far been denied visitation. They will only be allowed to see Castro in court during the promised hearing.

To support his family, Castro worked as a shepherd alongside his brother. Now that the family is left without a primary breadwinner, life is difficult. Castro’s 13 year old son wants to take over his father’s position. Salam only receives support from her brother-in-law and some Burin residents whose family members have also been taken by Israeli authorities.

Salam’s youngest son will soon need a second eye surgery in Jerusalem. His father’s arrest might make this impossible. Raising 6 children by herself for an unknown period of time has put a great deal of pressure on Salam.

Castro Risaq’s youngest son requires a costly eye surgery that may be impossible now due to his father’s imprisonment

Burin has been subject to many arrests on a daily basis for the past years. The village is surrounded from all directions by four illegal Israeli settlements. The Israeli military often patrols through the village at night, raids homes, and arbitrarily arrests members of Palestinian families. There has been a series of harassment and arrest of Burin’s youth, particularly those with a connection to the youth community centre in the village.

According to previous reports, between 200 and 300 Israeli soldiers have been known to raid Burin village. Arriving at night, the military will awaken entire families and destroy the inside belongings of the home. Parents complain that their children have not slept peacefully in years due to the constant threat of an army night raid.

On 21 April 2012, 10 youth were arrested in Burin. 5 of them were expected to take their final exams this year. It is unknown what their fate, or Castro’s, will be.

Maria Erdely is a volunteer with the International Solidarity Movement (name has been changed).

Campaign: A message from Moira Jilani

By Moira Jilani

22 May 2012 | Killing Without Consequence

My beloved husband, Ziad Jilani, was executed by Israeli Border Policeman, Maxim Vinogradov on June 11, 2010. There is undeniable evidence that my husband was lying unarmed and wounded on the ground, posing no threat when Israeli Border Policeman Maxim Vinogradov shot him point blank in the head. Despite the multiple contradictions, revisions and blatant lies in the testimony of the soldier who killed him, exposed by the autopsy, the Israeli authorities have closed the case against Maxim Vinogradov and his commander Shadi Kheir Al-Din.

The closing of the case against Ziad’s killer is a clear message to Israeli soldiers: simply claim that you suspect a Palestinian is a terrorist and you will not be held accountable if you execute him or her. My daughters and I have appealed to the Israeli Supreme Court to demand Israel’s state prosecutor bring criminal charges against Ziad’s killer and his commander. We seek international support, not only to get justice for Ziad but also to save the lives of future potential victims by sending Israeli soldiers the message that they can be held accountable for killing innocent people. Help us change this message.

Sign the petition demanding that Israel’s state prosecuter press charges against Ziad’s killer!

Email killingwithoutconsequence@gmail.com if you can organize a memorial for Ziad in your city on June 11th.

June 11, 2010 started off like almost any other day, except that before Ziad left he mentioned to me that we had not taken our three girls anywhere since they finished their exams. He thought that they deserved an outing of their choice. After kissing me goodbye, he turned one last time to remind me to speak with them and decide where they thought they would want to go. Ziad told me to make sure that we be packed and ready when he honked his horn to signal us to grab our gear and head down stairs to his pick-up truck.

Unfortunately, he never made it home. That was the last time I ever saw my husband.

We had to conduct our own investigation to find out how my husband died. The alternative was the propaganda that he was a “terrorist.” We set off not only to prove my husband’s innocence, but also to unravel the lies that were being conveyed to the media.We appealed to an Israeli judge to exhume Ziad’s body, three weeks after we buried him. After the judge granted our request for an autopsy Maxim Vinogradov and Shadi Kheir Al-Din abruptly changed their testimonies, “remembering” more damning facts. As the Israeli police had not chosen to interrogate any eyewitness other than the soldiers involved, we requested independent eyewitness go to the police.

The subsequent investigation concluded that Ziad was driving home from the Friday prayers at al Aqsa Mosque. In Wadi Jouz, a neighborhood in occupied East Jerusalem. The lane to the Al Aqsa Mosque was closed by the Israeli Army and Border Police, while the lane from the mosque was cramped by cars, bumper-to-bumper. A stone, possibly from a nearby demonstration, hit Ziad’s windshield and he pulled into the empty lane, where a group of Border Patrolmen were walking on the road. The pickup truck apparently hit some of the soldiers causing light injuries. Only one soldier was hospitalized with scrapes. The Border Policemen immediately opened massive fire at and into Ziad’s truck. The shooting hit other vehicles and injured a little girl sitting in a nearby car. Ziad fled from the bullets, seeking shelter in a nearby dead-end alleyway where his uncle lives. Three Border policemen ran forward firing into the alley.

Ziad leapt out of the truck and ran in the direction his uncle’s house. He was shot in the back and fell injured to the pavement. Border Policeman Maxim Vinogradov then walked up to my husband, put his M16 to Ziad’s head, and fired three shots. According to an eyewitness, Maxim Vinogradov had his boot on my husband’s neck and was screaming at him in Hebrew when he shot him.

Twelve days before Maxim Vinogradov executed my husband, Israeli commandos had raided the Mavi Marmara, a Turkish ship carrying aid to Gaza, while in international waters, shooting dead nine of its passengers. On that day, Vinogradov responded to a Facebook post of his friend, Avi Yaacobov, which said in Hebrew “Exterminate Turkey and all the Arabs from the world.” Vinogradov replied: ” I am with you my brother and I with God’s help will begin this.” His friend replied, ”And you, knock on wood, are capable of it.” This is just one of many similar posts where Maxim expresses opinions calling for death to Arabs. Maxim is being supported in acting on his racist convictions by the impunity granted him by the Israeli authorities.

My husband loved life and enjoyed it to it’s fullest, he loved people and animals and he loved us, his family, with a passion. He was not a terrorist. My American citizenship has meant nothing to the Israeli authorities and far too little to the American government. I would like answers and to see to it that trigger-happy soldiers and police men serving in the Israeli military and border police are not allowed to kill more innocent people.

For more information see: http://killingwithoutconsequence.com/

Volunteer in Gaza with the ISM

21 May 2012 | International Solidarity Movement, Gaza

The International Solidarity Movement is appealing for activists to join our team in the besieged Gaza Strip.  After being barred from Gaza in 2003 following the murders of Rachel Corrie and Tom Hurndall, ISM Gaza was reinstated in August 2008 when ISM and other volunteers traveled aboard the historic, siege-breaking voyage of the first Free Gaza Movement boat. ISM has maintained a constant presence in Gaza since that time, for over three years of Israel’s crippling siege.

ISM volunteers refused to leave when Israel began bombing Gaza in December 2008. During the devastating 23-day assault, activists accompanied ambulances and provided vital testimony to the international media.

Daily life in Gaza is a harrowing struggle. In stark violation of international law, Israel enforces a three-nautical-mile fishing blockade. The Israeli-imposed ‘buffer zone’ swallows up a third of Gaza’s farmland, which lies along the Israeli border. Farmers are routinely shot and killed simply for working their land well inside Gaza’s borders.

ISM Gaza volunteers accompany farmers and demonstrators in the ‘buffer zone’, as well as fishermen routinely harassed by the Israeli navy. Visit https://www.palsolidarity.org/category/gaza/ to watch videos and read reports by ISM Gaza.

Those interested in joining the ISM Gaza team are required to attend a preliminary training in their home country and must communicate with the volunteers in Gaza prior to arrival. Entering Gaza is an arduous process that may require some time to be spent in Egypt. All ISM volunteers in Gaza must agree to ISM principles as delineated on palsolidarity.org.

Also recommended:

  • Previous experience in the West Bank with the ISM strongly encouraged; if not, experience with nonviolent direct action, preferably elsewhere in the Middle East
  • A historical understanding of Palestine and some knowledge of the current political situation
  • Arabic language skills highly recommended; if not English is necessary
  • Cultural sensitivity
  • Ability to stay in Gaza for an extended period of time (over a month)
  • High degree of independence and self-sufficiency
  • Ability to do deal with protracted stressful situations
  • Experience with consensus-based decision-making

For more information about where to attend a preliminary training or other questions, please email gazaism@gmail.com.