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Join us! For a day of action to #EndHebronMilitaryZone and #OpenShuhadaSt on March 1st

25th February, 2016 | International Solidarity Movement, al-Khalil team | al-Khalil, occupied Palestine

Our thunderclap campaign, calling on the international community to pressure the Israeli military to put an end to the closed military zone in al-Khalil (Hebron) will come to an end on the 1st of March, 2016. Join us for a day of action!

In 1994, the shops on formerly vibrant Shuhada street (martyrs’ street) were forced to close by the Israeli military, and soon Palestinians were not allowed in the area anymore. Within a few years the street became a ‘ghost street,’ with shops and houses boarded up and no Palestinians permitted to walk on most of what was once a main thoroughfare for the city. This arbitrary closure occurred after the Ibrahimi mosque massacre and was said to be a short-term measure. Short-term became long-term; the street has now been closed to Palestinians for 22 years.

4 months ago, the Israeli military restricted movements of Palestinian residents of al-Khalil even more by declaring the last part of Shuhada street, as well as much of the adjacent neighborhood of Tel Rumeida, a closed military zone. Palestinians had to register with the Israeli military in order to access their homes in these zones. This measure resulted in the tiny last bit of Shuhada Street that so far is still accessible for Palestinians – at least in theory – being barred for most Palestinians now – clearly yet another step in the Israeli attempts to force out Palestinians of the Old City in al-Khalil to connect the illegal settlements. This supposed ‘short-term’ measure keeps being renewed by military orders, making life for Palestinians in the area harder than ever.

Let’s not let the Israeli military once again take over more of the city of al-Khalil.  It’s time show support to Palestinians struggling every day, living in an apartheid city. It’s time to show the world, once again, what is happening in al-Khalil.

What you can do to act:

  • On the 1st of March, our Thunderclap campaign will come to an end, and our message to #EndHebronMilitaryZone will be published on each one of our supporters’ twitter or facebook accounts. The goal is to reach as many people as we can around the world. Support our thunderclap campaign today, join the social media thunder and raise awareness.
  • Tweet on the 1st of march with the hashtag #EndHebronMilitaryZone, using sample tweets, photos and videos here provided.
  • Join our Facebook event page for updates and more information.
  • If you are in Hebron, attend the events for #OpenShuhadaSt, or share the call in the media.
  • Call on organizations you work with or are affiliated with to add their names to the Action Alert, and to issue brief statements detailing why the organization is supporting this campaign and why you find it important. Please send all requests to sign and statements to palreports@gmail.com for publication. Please also contact us for versions of the Action Alert in languages other than English and Arabic – we currently have translations available in German, French, and Dutch, and will update this page as more become available.
  • Organize an event, such as a demonstration, presentation or other campaign to raise awareness on the situation in Hebron and mobilize support in your area
  • Contact media outlets in your country and call on them to report on the situation of the closed military zone, in Hebron and Palestine in general
  • Write a message to your elected representatives (MEPs, members of congress or whichever position is the equivalent in your country) using the sample text included in this article, and encourage your friends and contacts to the same
  • If you are based in Europe, call on your EU representatives to suspend the EU-Israel Association Agreement until Israel complies with international law
  • Organize a delegation to visit Hebron, see the situation for yourselves and talk to Palestinians about the restrictions imposed by the Israeli occupation. Seeing the conditions in Hebron with your own eyes offers an understanding of the occupation that one cannot get from reading about it. If you want to organize a delegation you can contact the ISM in Hebron at palreportskhalil2012@gmail.com and we will help you and answer any questions you might have.

ISM calls for internationals to volunteer in Palestine

15th February, 2016 | International Solidarity Movement | occupied Palestine

Today, Palestinians are facing an enormous amount of pressure in their lives due to the growing violence of Israeli forces. They face restrictions of movement, daily harassment, intimidation and attacks at hands of Israeli occupying forces and extremist settlers. ISM is a Palestinian-led movement; our actions are initiated on the invitation of Palestinians, following their lead and wishes. We, as internationals, are needed to monitor human rights violations and show our support for the popular struggle.

Since the beginning of October, Israeli occupation forces increased their abuse of power by carrying out a series of extrajudicial killings of Palestinians, in a manner that is completely unjustified and, in most cases, constituting crimes of war. Israeli politicians have fueled the motivation to kill Palestinians by making open statements encouraging Israeli citizens to become executioners. In addition, Israeli forces are applying measures of collective punishment towards the families of Palestinians who are killed in this unlawful manner. Over 170 Palestinians have been killed since October, many of them children. On February 14th alone Israeli forces shot dead 5 Palestinians, including 3 children, and critically wounded a 14-year-old girl in al-Khalil.

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Israeli forces conducting intimidating military patrol as schoolgirls walk down the street in the Old City of al-Khalil

With more volunteers, ISM could more effectively fulfill our commitments to the Palestinian communities we work with, such as walking with schoolchildren and monitoring checkpoints. A larger team also opens up the possibilities of working in more locations and regions where international presence can be useful.

Our presence in Palestine is crucial, because we witness and document what we see and can show the world what is happening on the ground. We do our best to prevent Palestinians from being harassed, and more importantly, we show them we are there in solidarity with them.

In Al-Khalil (Hebron), we need volunteers to walk children to school and monitor checkpoints where students and teachers cross on their way to and from school. Palestinian parents of kindergarten children living in H2 (the area completely controlled by the Israeli military with constant presence of soldiers and settlers) fear to send their children to school without internationals to accompany them. Children in the neighborhoods in H2 routinely face harassment and intimidation from Israeli forces and settlers, and Israeli forces deploy tear gas, stun grenades and rubber-coated metal bullets regularly against schoolchildren at some of the checkpoints ISM monitors.

One of our volunteers walks a group of children to school in al-Khalil
One of our volunteers walks a group of children to school in al-Khalil
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Young schoolboy looks on as Israeli forces body search his teacher just outside their school in al-Khalil

In occupied East Jerusalem, many Palestinian families face the constant threat of having their homes demolished by Israeli forces. As a way of showing support and sharing their story, we go to these families to document their situation and report it in the media. In the old city of Jerusalem, some Palestinian families also face eviction, like in the case of grandma Nora; all part of a plan to replace Palestinians in the old city by Israeli settlers. Part of our job is to make sure that these cases don’t stay unknown to the world by reporting them on our website and sharing it on social media.

In Ramallah and its surroundings, we monitor the Friday popular marches. Palestinian popular committees all over the West Bank organize regular demonstrations where ISM is called to participate. We work alongside popular resistance to the occupation, providing international presence and documentation at protests and actions facing attack by Israeli military forces. Sometimes, Palestinians ask us to accompany them to the military court. We attend hearings of their family members or friends in an attempt to show them that they are not alone.

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Demonstrators gathered at night around the fire in the ongoing protest tent opposing the closed military zone in al-Khalil
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9-year-old girl being rushed from the scene after Israeli forces shot her with live ammunition in the arm during their attack on the weekly Friday demonstration in Kafr Qaddum

In Tulkarm and its surroundings, thousands of Palestinians cross the checkpoints everyday to go to work in Israel. The conditions of the crossing are tiring and humiliating for the workers, who arrive several hours before the opening of the gates and have to stand in line in order to be on time for work. Since October, the university of Tulkarm has also been witnessing many violent attacks on campus from the Israeli forces, in which several students were injured with teargas and live ammunition. The ISM team monitors and reports on these Human Rights violations.

A large part of ISM’s work has always involved documenting the violence and impacts of the occupation and the Palestinian struggle against it, working to produce and share media to an international audience to build awareness and global opposition to Israel’s unjust, illegal occupation.

ISM volunteers work amplifying Palestinian voices of resistance while in Palestine and especially after returning to our home countries around the world.

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5 children who were forced out of their home in Jerusalem after it was demolished; the ISM team met with their family to learn and share their story

When you come to Palestine, try to bring a camera and your laptop if you have one, as both are extremely useful for media work. To plan your trip to the West Bank, please read our traveling information. We ask our volunteers to commit for a minimum of two weeks after completing our two day training, but keep in mind that we always prefer to have volunteers stay for longer periods of time.

Please note that we cannot sponsor people or otherwise facilitate anyone’s entry into Gaza; the information contained here and in our travel and training pages applies to our work in the West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem.

When you decide to come to Palestine to join ISM, or if you have any further questions not covered in our page on joining us in Palestine, please contact palreports@gmail.com or call the phone number for the training coordinator once you have entered Palestine at 059 530 7448

In solidarity,

ISM Team

ISM volunteers raising Palestinian flag in front of the Apartheid wall.
ISM volunteers raising Palestinian flag in front of the Apartheid wall.

Mohammed al-Qiq on the verge of death: sign Avaaz petition to demand his freedom NOW!

12th February 2016 |International Solidarity Movement, Ramallah Team | occupied Palestine

 

Journalist, Mohammed al-Qiq, in his hospital bed on the brink of death.
Journalist, Mohammed al-Qiq, in his hospital bed on the brink of death. Photo credit: ALRAY Palestinian Media Agency

33-year-old journalist, Mohammed al-Qiq, is on his 80th day of a hunger strike in protest against his imprisonment without charges or trial. Al-Qiq’s health has deteriorated to the point of facing imminent death.

We are making a call to the international community to sign the Avaaz petition to demand the European Parliament to free Mohammed al-Qiq and demand the European Union to suspend its Association Agreement with Israel until it complies with international law.

In addition, we call all people in the world to organize protests on the streets, in front of Israeli Embassies and Consulates, and Public Squares to demand freedom for Mohammed al-Qiq.

Daily protests have been held during the past week, across the West Bank, Gaza, occupied Jerusalem and at the  Haemek hospital in Israel, where al-Qiq is being held and has been force-fed.

Today is Mohammed al-Qiq’s 80th day of hunger strike and he is on the verge of death!

WE MUST ALL SIGN AND SHARE THIS PETITION AND TAKE ACTION NOW!

 

ACT NOW ! Put an end to the ‘Closed Military Zone’ in Tel Rumeida and Shuhada Street, Hebron

December 13th, 2015 | International Solidarity Movement | Action Alert

The undersigned organisations are calling on the international community to take immediate action regarding the continuous closure of the Tel Rumeida neighborhood and the part of Shuhada Street that has remained accessible to Palestinian residents since the Ibrahimi mosque massacre in 1994, in occupied al-Khalil (Hebron). For more than a month, Palestinians and internationals have been denied access to this part of the city since the Israeli occupation forces have declared the area a ‘closed military zone’.

The ‘closed military zone’, first declared on November 1st 2015, was designed to include Palestinian neighborhoods while excluding adjacent illegal Israeli settlements. This discriminatory closure is being upheld by continuously renewed ‘military orders’ that lack official signatures or stamps. Palestinian residents were forced to register with the army or else risk being barred from their homes, while Israeli settlers are free to roam the streets without being stopped.

“This is yet another step in pushing Palestinians out of Tel Rumeida and Shuhada street”, says Jenny, from the ISM team in al Khalil.

Such a restriction of movement clearly constitutes a collective punishment on the whole Palestinian community, illegal under international law. Article 33 of the Fourth Geneva convention specifically states that “no protected person may be punished for an offence he or she has not personally committed. Collective penalties and likewise all measures of intimidation or of terrorism are prohibited.”

Tel Rumeida resident Abed Salaymeh explains : “soldiers and settlers are making life for the Palestinians intolerable to force them to leave their houses voluntarily. This is a crime under international law. They are targeting activists to silence the truth and stop the truth from reaching the whole world”.

International and local activists are increasingly at risk of direct attacks by Israeli occupation forces and illegal settlers, as they are specifically targeted for their efforts to document and report on human rights abuses.

Activists are denied access to areas by Israeli occupation forces and face unfounded arbitrary arrests, such as on the 3rd of November, the 26th of November, 27th of November, and most recently on the 28th of november; purely on Israeli forces’ accusations that lack any evidence. Human rights defenders, whose work the United Nations stressed as important, are increasingly threatened even inside their homes and offices or illegally kicked out of them.

The Israeli forces’ attempts to silence the Palestinian voice on the events goes hand in hand with the closure of Palestinian radio stations in clear infringement of the freedom of press and opinion, acknowledged in the Universal Declaration on Human Rights (UDHR) of 1948, article 19: “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers”.

“It is important to document in order to expose Israeli crimes”, explains Imad Abu Shamsiyyeh, a Tel Rumeida resident.

These inhumane measures come after Israeli occupation forces gunned down Homam Adnan Sa’id, 23,  and Islam Rafiq ‘Ebeido on the 27th and 28th of October in the Tel Rumeida neighbourhood. While the Israeli government claims that both were ‘neutralized’ when attacking Israeli forces, many eye-witness statements refute this claim; CCTV footage has not yet been released by the Israeli forces. Since the beginning of October, a total of 112 Palestinians have been shot and left to bleed to death without medical aid in a similar manner in what Amnesty International refers to as ‘unlawful killings‘.

The outlined measures, restrictions, and human rights violations are focused primarily and exclusively on making the Palestinian voice – and in the long run the inhabitants of the area – disappear altogether.

 

The undersigned organisations call for:

  • An immediate end to collective punishment and the ‘closed military zone’ order in Tel Rumeida and Shuhada Street;
  • Cessation of threats and harassment of Palestinian residents as well as foreign and local human rights defenders;
  • Removal of restrictions on movement throughout the Old City of Hebron;
  • stopping the imposed  military law on Palestinian residents as they are civilians;
  • Suspension of the EU-Israel association agreement until Israel complies with International Law;
  • Removal of all illegal Israeli settlements from Hebron.
  • Reconsideration of the status of “charity” of the Hebron Fund, that allows people to make tax-free donations to an organisation funding the illegal settlement of Israelis in the city of Hebron
  • Cessation of unconditional US Aid to Israel until it complies with international law.
  • Release of the bodies of Palestinians killed by Israeli forces, as provided in article 17 of the 1949 Geneva Convention I “[Parties to the conflict] shall further ensure that the dead are honourably interred, if possible according to the rites of the religion to which they belonged, that their graves are respected, grouped if possible according to the nationality of the deceased, properly maintained and marked so that they may always be found”.

Signatories :

BDS Slovenia

Christian Peacemaker Teams Palestine

Dominican Palestine Coordinating Committee

اتحاد لجان العمل الصحي Health Work Committees

Hebron Defense Committee

Hebron Rehabilitation Committee  لجنة إعمار الخليل  

International Middle East Media Centre

International Women’s Peace Service

Merton PSC

Middle East Crisis Support – Woodstock, NY

Minnesota Break the Bonds Campaign

Newcastle Palestine Campaign

Operation Dove – Operazione Colomba

Popular National Conference for Jerusalem

The Agricultural Relief Committee (PARC) الاغاثة الزراعية

The Palestinian Farmers Union

The Popular Committee for Palestinian Refugees in Hebron District

Union of Palestinian Women’s Committees اتحاد لجان المرأة الفلسطينية

Unison Northumberland

Women’s Studies Centre امركز الدراسات النسوية في الخليل

Youth Center – Palestinian Medical Relief Society مركز تدريب الشباب المجتمعي

If your organisation wishes to support our call, contact us : palreports@gmail.com

International call for volunteers

21st August 2015 | International Solidarity Movement, Ramallah Team | Occupied Palestine

Update 6th September:

We are making an urgent call for volunteers to come and join us to support Palestinians in their daily resistance towards the Israeli illegal occupation of their land.

Just this last Wednesday, a 75 year old woman was brutally attacked by Israeli soldiers as she tried to defend her son from being kidnapped, in the village of Salem. The same soldiers then attacked and kidnapped 8 shepherds from that area. The shepherds of Salem struggle everyday to access their fields and do their work, and they urgently need our help  to accompany them and secure a safe environment to prevent the soldiers from harassing and attacking them.

Likewise, in the Jordan Valley, Palestinian bedouins are suffering from massive house demolitions every week, leaving them homeless in extremely harsh conditions. There is an urgent need for international presence to prevent more destruction of houses, theft of land and construction of illegal settlements, and to call out for international actions and campaigns, as we did in Susiya.

And now that the season for olive harvest is soon to come, we also ask you to join us in October to pick up olives with the farmers. October is the time when the olives are ripe and ready to be harvested, but the Israeli authorities only permit farmers a very limited amount of time to do all this work, and they depend on our help to harvest as many olives as possible, since this is their main source of subsistence. Moreover, our international presence during harvest is crucial to prevent soldiers and illegal settlers from attacking the farmers during their work. This is why your presence makes a real difference.

 

*******

 

During the months of July and August, there has been an escalation of violence from illegal Israeli settlers and the Israeli army towards Palestinians.

ISM is sending an urgent call for volunteers to join us in Palestine. Check the join us section of our website or email ISM at palreports@gmail.com for more information.

On a weekly basis, people throughout the West Bank are being arrested without charges, houses raided during the night, new houses have been demolished, settler violence has increased in the city of Hebron and in other villages, and the Israeli navy has increased the number of attacks towards Gazan fishermen.

On August 1st, the infant Ali Dawabshe was brutally murdered with an arson attack to his house perpetrated by illegal Israeli settlers in the village of Duma. His father, Saad Dawabshe, died one week after from severe burn injuries. Both his mother, Riham, and his 4 year old brother, Ahamd, remain hospitalized with severe burn injuries all over their bodies, with high risk of dying.

Baby Ali's bedroom in ashes, with his pictures
Baby Ali’s bedroom in ashes, with his pictures

Since the end of the last Zionist massacre against Gaza there have been 1312 reported attacks against Gazan fishermen.

Since then, 22 boats have been stolen; 26 fishermen have been injured; one fisherman, Tawfiq Abu Riela, has been assassinated; 28 boats have been disabled by bullet fire; 2 big fishing boats have been sunken by rocket fire, one in Deir El Balah at 300m from the coast and one in Gaza City at 5 miles; 51 fishermen have been kidnapped while working and 3 fishermen remain prisoners until now.

Fishermen's boats in the coast of Gaza.
Fishermen’s boats in the coast of Gaza.

The team in Hebron has reported an increase of night raids by Israeli forces and attacks by illegal settlers, which is terrorizing Palestinians living in Hebron. Two days ago, on August 20th, a group of French extremist Zionists intimidated and attacked international activists and local Palestinians. This group of extremists, called Kahane, which is considered a terrorist organization under Israeli law, was received with signs of sympathy by the soldiers.

The extremists proudly held the infamous yellow flag of Kahane group
The extremists proudly held the infamous yellow flag of Kahane group
The soldier handcuffed and blindfolded a Palestinian young man
The soldier handcuffed and blindfolded a Palestinian young man

At approximately 5:00 am, on Wednesday, August 19, the homes of the Totah and Totanji families were demolished by the Israeli army in the neighborhood of Wadi al Joz, in East Jerusalem. This neighborhood has been under threat of demolition since December, 2014, despite the fact that there are no accountable papers presenting a demolition order, nonetheless, the army has been slowly carrying out this plan. Neighbors live in constant fear that anytime their homes will be torn down.

Nureddin Amro sitting on the rubble of his home, which was demolished on March 31st this year (photo credit The Washington Post)
Nureddin Amro sitting on the rubble of his home, which was demolished on March 31st this year (photo credit The Washington Post)

In very similar conditions, the village of Susiya has been suffering from enormous fear by the threat of mass demolition orders issued by the Israeli government since 2012.

Village of Susiya
Village of Susiya

ISM also needs volunteers to join the 2015 olive harvest campaign.

ISM volunteers join Palestinian farming communities each year to harvest olives in areas where Palestinians face settler and military violence while working their land. Your presence can make a big difference, with Palestinian communities stating that the presence of international volunteers reduces the risk of extreme violence from Israeli settlers and the Israeli army.

The olive tree is a Palestinian national symbol, and the Israeli military systematically prevents agricultural fruition, in order to make life for Palestinians more difficult. The Israeli occupation provides a platform for Palestinian rights to be violated in an array of ways; the attack on agriculture is at the forefront.

Already documented this year, and to list a few cases; the trees have suffered settler sewage runoff , sabotaging fires, and being uprooted. Olive trees comprise of an essential 14% of the Palestinian agricultural economy.

We support Palestinians’ assertion of their right to earn their livelihoods and be present on their lands. International solidarity activists engage in non-violent intervention and documentation and practical support, which enables many families to pick their olives.

The campaign will begin during the last week of September and will last around 5 weeks.  We request a minimum of 10 days commitment from harvest volunteers once they have finished their training, but stress that people staying for a longer period of time are needed as well. We ask that volunteers start arriving around the 20th of September, so that we will be prepared when the harvest begins.

Training

We request volunteers who join us any time of the year to commit for a minimum of two weeks after completing training, but stress that people who can work with us for longer periods of time are needed as well. In the case of the olive harvest campaign, we ask volunteers to commit with ISM for a minimum period of 10 days after completing training. The ISM will be holding mandatory two day training sessions which will run weekly on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Please see the join ISM page or contact palreports@gmail.com for further information.