Category: Features - Page 185 - International Solidarity Movement

Settler celebrations of ethnic cleansing disrupt Sheikh Jarrah for second straight day

International Solidarity Movement

13 May 2010

Settlers and Palestinians in the street of Sheikh Jarrah

Hundreds of settlers held disruptive celebrations in the Palestinian neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah yesterday in honor of “Jerusalem Day”. Dancing, screaming and praying in the street, the settlers disrupted life for over six hours, as police barricades and teeming masses prevented traffic from flowing as usual. One Palestinian woman was violently assaulted in the afternoon, resulting in a gash across her face and a broken nose. Palestinian residents observing from their homes and/or sidewalk were subjected to the extremely racist harassment which is consistent with any settler activity.

Palestinians, Israelis and internationals staging a small counter-demonstration were forced by police out of the street and onto the sidewalk. This restriction on freedom of speech came shortly after massive crowds of settlers effectively closed the street for hours, filling multiple blocks with police-facilitated nationalist celebrations of ethnic cleansing. Four Israeli activists were arrested after a small counter-demonstration held at the entrance to Sheikh Jarrah.

Palestinian women protest the racist "Jerusalem Day" outside the occupied Gawi house

“Jerusalem Day” according to the Hebrew calendar, falls 2-3 weeks after the end of the war of 1967 when Jerusalem was “unified”. In reality, this holiday observes the beginning of a systematic ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian would-be capital, East Jerusalem. “Jerusalem Day” is observed with a march through West Jerusalem and the Old City, particularly the Muslim Quarter. In the past few years, the march has taken a very extreme nationalist character, and extreme right messages are celebrated. Last year, there were violent clashes when marchers attacked Palestinians while marching though the Old City and attacked Israeli leftist protestors who held a quiet demonstration near the march.

Contextual background on Sheikh Jarrah

Approximately 475 Palestinian residents living in the Karm Al-Ja’ouni neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, located directly north of the Old City, face imminent eviction from their homes. All 28 families are refugees from 1948, primarily from West Jerusalem and Haifa, whose houses in Sheikh Jarrah were built and given to them through a joint project between the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and the Jordanian government in 1956.

Facing systematic ethnic cleansing through the Israeli judicial system, all 28 families of the neighborhood ultimately await eviction. The violent eviction of theKamel al-Kurd family, by Israeli police and settlers in November of 2008, resulted in the death of ailing Abu Kamel (Mohammad) al Kurd, 61. The August 2009 evictions of the Gawi and Hannoun extended families and December 2009 occupation of Rifqa al Kurd’s front addition followed, beginning a visible trend of ethnic cleansing in Sheikh Jarrah. Over 60 residents, including 20 children, have now been displaced.

The evicted families established protest tents near their homes, many of which were repeatedly demolished by the Jerusalem Municipality. As a result, only the Rifqa al Kurd tent remains standing. Members of the Gawi, Hannoun and Kamel al Kurd families continue a daily presence outside of the occupied Gawi home. The Palestinians and their international and Israeli supporters face continual harassment from Israeli settlers. Police presence in the community is almost entirely directed at prosecuting Palestinians, and not in neutrally protecting residents from harassment and violence.

Constructing new Jewish settlements and/or occupying Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem and the West Bank is illegal under many international laws, including Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention. The plight of the Gawi, al-Kurd and Hannoun families is just a small part of Israel’s ongoing campaign of the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from East Jerusalem, the capital of a hypothetical independent state.

Legal Background

The eviction orders, issued by Israeli courts, are a result of claims made in 1967 by the Sephardic Community Committee and the Knesseth Yisrael Association (who since sold their claim to the area to Nahalat Shimon) – settler organizations whose aim is to take over the whole area using falsified deeds for the land dating back to 1875. In 1972, these two settler organizations applied to have the land registered in their names with the Israel Lands Administration (ILA). Their claim to ownership was noted in the Land Registry; however, it was never made into an official registry of title. The first Palestinian property in the area was taken over at this time.

The case continued in the courts for another 37 years. Amongst other developments, the first lawyer of the Palestinian residents reached an agreement with the settler organizations in 1982 (without the knowledge or consent of the Palestinian families) in which he recognized the settlers’ ownership in return for granting the families the legal status of protected tenants. This affected 23 families and served as a basis for future court and eviction orders (including theal -Kurd family house take-over in December 2009), despite the immediate appeal filed by the families’ new lawyer. Furthermore, a Palestinian landowner, Suleiman Darwish Hijazi , has legally challenged the settlers’ claims. In 1994 he presented documents certifying his ownership of the land to the courts, including tax receipts from 1927. In addition, the new lawyer of the Palestinian residents located a document, proving the land inSheikh Jarrah had never been under Jewish ownership. The Israeli courts rejected these documents.

The first eviction orders were issued in 1999 based on the (still disputed) agreement from 1982 and, as a result, two Palestinian families (Hannoun and Gawi) were evicted in February 2002. After the 2006 Israeli Supreme Court finding that the settler committees’ ownership of the lands was uncertain, and the Lands Settlement officer of the court requesting that the ILA remove their names from the Lands Registrar, the Palestinian families returned back to their homes. The courts, however, failed to recognize new evidence presented to them and continued to issue eviction orders based on decisions from 1982 and 1999 respectively. Further evictions followed in November 2008 (Kamel al-Kurd family) and August 2009 (Hannoun and Gawi families for the second time). An uninhabited section of a house belonging to the al-Kurd family was taken over by settlers on 1 December 2009.

The ultimate aim of the Zionist organizations is to convert Sheikh Jarrah into a new Jewish settlement and to create a Jewish continuum that will effectively cut off the Old City from the northern Palestinian neighborhoods. On 28 August 2008,Nahalat Shimon International filed a plan to build a series of five and six-story apartment blocks – Town Plan Scheme (TPS) 12705 – in the Jerusalem Local Planning Commission. If TPS 12705 comes to pass, the existing Palestinian houses in this key area would be demolished, about 500 Palestinians would be evicted, and 200 new settler units would be built for a new settlement: Shimon HaTzadik

7th Anniversary of the shooting of Thomas Hurndall

International Solidarity Movement

11th April 2010

The 11th April marks the seventh anniversary of the ultimately fatal shooting of British ISM activist, Thomas Hurndall. Tom was shot in the head by an Israeli sniper in Rafah, Gaza, whilst attempting to move two young girls out of the line of fire. He went in to a coma, and died in hospital 9 months later, on the 13th January 2004.

Tom was 21 years old when he was shot. A photography student, he had left the UK to volunteer as a ‘human shield’ in Iraq. Here he heard about the ISM, one of whose volunteers, Rachel Corrie, had just been killed by a bulldozer whilst protesting house demolitions in Rafah. He headed there himself, arriving on the 6th April.

On the day of his shooting, Tom was with other ISM activists walking through Rafah when Israeli sniper fire started. Almost everyone ran for safety, but Tom noticed that three children, aged between four and seven, had remained motionless, paralysed with fear. Tom went back for them. He got the little boy to safety, and then went back for the two girls. He was wearing a fluorescent vest, and was clearly unarmed. An Israeli sniper shot him in the head.

tom2 — Tom after he was shot in the head by Israeli sniper

There was a two hour delay at the border of the Gaza Strip before an ambulance was able to take him to a hospital in Be’er Sheva. In a coma, he was transferred to a hospital in the UK, where he died the following year.

The soldier who shot him, Taysir Hayb, was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to eleven and a half years in prison. A British inquest into the killing found that the killing was intentional – in other words, murder.

Tom’s shooting followed the murder of Rachel Corrie, run over by a bulldozer on the 16th March, and the near fatal shooting of Brian Avery, shot in the face in Jenin on April 5th. Later that month, another Brit, filmmaker James Miller, was also killed by a sniper in Rafah. The Israeli military have refused to accept any responsibility for what they did to Rachel, Brian or James.

International ISM groups show solidarity with Palestine and reveal Zionist practices abroad

International Solidarity Movement

05 April 2010

H&M Occupation fashion show in Gothenburg, Sweden

ISM groups from around the world are taking the anti-apartheid and anti-occupation campaigns, plus a bit of Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) revolution out of Palestine and into the streets of their home countries. Here is a summary of some of the action from the past week.

ISM London took the opportunity to tell Jerusalem mayor Nir Barkat how the world feels about the recently announced plan to build 1600 new homes in occupied East Jerusalem and to draw connections between the Israeli state and the apartheid South African regime. At the March 22, 2010 demonstration held outside of London’s Chatham House, over 100 activists made it clear that Israeli’s ethnic cleansing policy and anyone who represents it, is not welcome in London!
To read the full story visit ISM London.

One week later, ISM activists from across England disrupted the IOF sponsored Jerusalem Quartet during their performance at Wigmore Hall in London. The Jerusalem Quartet receives special designations from the IOF and plays regularly for the occupying forces. This action was to promote the cultural boycott of Israel. Palestinians are calling urgently for an international consumer and cultural boycott after decades of failed talks. As with Apartheid South Africa, we must respond – until Israel meets its obligations under international law and a just solution is agreed. BDS supporters agree that states which maintain occupation and violates international law do not deserve invitations to cultural promotion events. To read the full story visit ISM London.

The Ahava Dead Sea beauty product shop in central London received a visit from ISM activists. Ahava manufactures its goods in the illegal settlement of Mitzpe Shalan in the occupied territories (Click here for more information). This was the second demonstration at the Ahava shop in an ongoing BDS campaign of Israeli products. A third demonstration is planned for April 10, 2010. Read the full story here.

The fashion capitol of the world, Paris, France, participated in unveiling H&M’s new Occupation Spring Collection. On March 20, 2010, over fifty activists dressed in army fatigues complete with plastic guns and clown noses, educated H&M shoppers of their inadvertent support of Israeli’s illegal occupation of Palestinian land and apartheid policies.
Swedish ISM activists are also actively participating in BDS actions. March 31, 2010, activists participated in their own H&M Occupation Fashion show in an H&M shop in Gothenburg. Activists strutted their Israel apartheid clothing along a catwalk while distributing information to potential H&M customers. Click to read the ISM Swedish report.

If your Palestine solidarity group has actions you’d like to share with the world, please send them to us! Solidarity from abroad offers hope to those suffering at home.

Military investigator testifies that head of IDF Southern Command instructed bulldozer operator not to cooperate with investigation

Rachel Corrie Foundation

29 March 2010

Monday, March 22 and Wednesday March 24, 2010 the Haifa District Court saw the fifth and sixth days of testimony in the civil lawsuit filed by Rachel Corrie’s family against the State of Israel for her unlawful killing in Rafah, Gaza. Rachel Corrie, an American human rights defender from Olympia, Washington, was crushed to death on March 16, 2003 by a Caterpillar D9R bulldozer. She had been nonviolently demonstrating against Palestinian home demolitions with fellow members of the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), a Palestinian-led movement committed to resisting the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land using nonviolent, direct action methods and principles.

An Israeli military police investigator, who was part of the team that investigated Rachel’s killing, completed his testimony on March 22. In his testimony he stated that:

* One commander of the unit involved in the incident interrupted the testimony of the operator of the bulldozer that killed Rachel, telling him that the head of the Southern Command of the Israeli military ordered him to stop talking, not to sign anything and not to cooperate with the investigation. When asked if he considered this an intervention into the interrogation, the investigator testified that he did.
* The investigator stated not only that he did not visit the site of the killing, but also that the bulldozer involved in the killing was removed from the scene directly after the incident. He testified that the only tool he used in conducting the investigation was taking testimonies of eye-witnesses and soldiers.
* In his investigation, he did not refer to or read the Israeli military manuals that provided instructions and safety standards for operation of D9 bulldozers. He also failed to question the bulldozer driver about these regulations.
* Though the camera posted on the border was taping 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, the investigator testified that he did not see footage from the camera, nor did he ask to, stating that it was someone else’s responsibility.

Asher Asban, who conducts professional investigations involving safety regulations related to both commercial and military incidents, provided expert testimony for the Corries. He testified that:

* According to the military’s rules, it was forbidden to operate the D9 bulldozer if there were civilians within a 20 meter radius around it.
* The driver would have been able to see bright colors such as that of the jacket Rachel was wearing when she was killed.
* The Israeli military had the ability to purchase cameras from Caterpillar to mount on the bulldozers. Such cameras would provide 360 degrees visibility.

On Wednesday, March 24, Craig Corrie, Rachel’s father, was the final witness to testify. Rather than concentrating on the failure to uphold a court order regarding two conditions under which to perform an autopsy, the State instead focused its line of questioning on passages from emails that Rachel wrote and on the family’s correspondence with the US Embassy and State Department regarding the issue of the autopsy and investigation. Mr. Corrie was also questioned as to whether Rachel was given the status of “shaheedah” (martyr) by the Palestinian Authority, and whether there were any streets named after her in Gaza or Ramallah. He answered that on the March 16th anniversary of Rachel’s death, a street was named for her in Ramallah and that according to his understanding of the word “shaheed,” it is used to describe anyone killed as a result of the occupation.

This portion of the trial with witnesses for the plaintiffs, the Corrie family, ended on March 24. The State has been granted 30 days to submit a list of witnesses and their affidavits. Judge Oded Gershon stated that proceedings will continue in September at the earliest with the next trial date currently set for September 5, 2010.

15 Arrested in Bethlehem Demo incl. PLO Executive Committee Member

Popular Struggle Coordination Committee

28 March 2010

Israeli forces arrested 15 demonstrators, including Abbas Zaki of the PLO Executive Committee, during a Bethlehem demonstration to mark Palm Sunday and protest Israeli restrictions on movement. An AP photographer and four members of local popular committees were also arrested.

About 200 demonstrators set out from the Church of Nativity today on their way to Jerusalem to mark Palm Sunday, protest Israeli-imposed restrictions on movement and demand that Israel respects Palestinians’ freedom of religion. The protesters, who overwhelmed the soldiers at the checkpoint in their numbers, managed to nonviolently pass through the Bethlehem checkpoint and enter Jerusalem. They were blocked by a massive police force shortly after and could not advance further.

Once blocked, the demonstrators, who all remained peaceful throughout the protest, held speeches, and then began heading back. It was at this point that the police staged its unprovoked attack on the retreating protesters. Among the 15 arrested were four Israelis, one international activist, PLO Executive Committee member Abbas Zaki and AP photographer Fadi Hamad, as well as four members of local Popular Committees.

For more details:
Jonathan Pollak +972546327736
Huwaida Arraf +9720542635936 / +972598336215

The march, which began after the Palm Sunday service at the Church of Nativity in Bethlehem, was held to protest a recent aggravation of Israeli restrictions on movement through the checkpoint. Protesters aimed to highlight restrictions on access to Jerusalem on the day marking Jesus’ entrance to Jerusalem in Christian tradition.