On Thursday 21 January ’10, tree ISM volunteers accompanied five farmers form the village of Abu Tayima in the Khouzaa area near Khan Younis, to their land near the Israeli border.
A long awaited rainfall in Gaza several days ago created good conditions for wheat sowing on this dangerous plot of land where in the past farmers were shot at by the Israeli soldiers patrolling the border.
One hour after arriving when sowing and ploughing were in full swing, two Israeli army jeeps drove alongside the border fence and stopped. From the distance we could see a number of soldiers moving between the two jeeps and soon after that they started firing at us. The farmers withdrew to the safer area while ISM volunteers remained in the field and used loudspeakers to inform the Israeli soldiers that they were dealing with the unarmed civilians working on their land who posed no threat to them.
After about 10 minutes the two jeeps drove away and another jeep arrived with warning sirens on, while the soldiers were shouting in Arabic that we should leave. The ISM volunteers repeated the explanation that Palestinian unarmed farmers were working on their land and that they would leave for their homes when their work was finished.
Shortly after the jeep left and farmers were able to return and complete their work.
One of the farmers told us that they choose to grow wheat there to minimise the risk for themselves and their families of being shot. He said that wheat did not require much looking after and that they hoped to make the same perilous journey to the same field in May to harvest their crops.
Four residents of Ni’ilin have been arrested last night during a military incursion into the West Bank village. Four others, who were not home at the time of the raid surrendered themselves in the morning. These recent arrests are a part of a concerted assault on the popular movement and the arrest of three prominent organizers from the village last Wednesday.
At around 3:00am tonight, a large military force invaded the village of Ni’ilin to stage mass arrests of residents suspected of participating in demonstrations against the Wall. During the incursion, over ten houses were raided and ransacked.
Tonight’s raid is the 13th staged in the village since 16 December. In this period alone, 16 of the village’s residents have been detained on various charges relating to anti-Wall protests, including three prominent organizers last Wednesday. Since May 2008, when demonstrations in the village began, 106 arrests of Palestinian anti-Wall activists have been made in Ni’ilin.
The arrests today are an escalation of an ongoing and extensive Israeli attempt to suppress the Palestinian popular resistance. Similar raids to the ones conducted in Ni’ilin have also been conducted in the village of Bil’in – where 34 residents have been arrested in the past six months, and the cities of Nablus, Ramallah and East Jerusalem.
Among those arrested in the recent campaign are also five members of the Bil’in Popular Committee, all suspected of incitement, and include Adeeb Abu Rahmah – who is already held in detention for over six months, and Abdallah Abu Rahmah – the Bil’in Popular Committee coordinator.
Prominent grassroots activists Jamal Jum’a (East Jerusalem) and Mohammed Othman (Jayyous) of the Stop the Wall NGO, involved in anti-Wall and boycott, divestment and sanctions campaigning, have recently been released from detention after being incarcerated for long periods based on secret evidence and with no charges brought against them.
Mohammed Khatib, coordinator of the Popular Struggle Coordination Committee said that “The arrests and persecution will not break our spirit. They are afraid because our movement of simple, unarmed civilians sheds light on their violence, on the injustice of the occupation. No prison wall could hide this truth”
On the night of December 9th 2009, over 200 Israeli soldiers entered the northern West Bank city of Nablus. Their mission: to round up local grassroots activists, whose promotion of popular struggle Israel had no answer for. Amongst those taken was 45 year old Wa’el Al-Faqeeh. Fifty soldiers stormed his home, pointing their weapons at him and his family as though the man they had come to arrest embodied a formidable threat. But those who know Al Faqeeh know that he worked tirelessly – and on a largely voluntary basis – in defense of human rights and the promotion of the strategies and philosophy of Palestinian non-violent resistance.
Political prisoner Wa’el Al-Faqeeh has been detained without charge by Israeli authorities for over a month, and is now facing trial in a military court scheduled to begin on the 19th of January. The abduction of Al-Faqeeh from his home, along with 4 other activists in the Nablus region, marked the beginning of the recent surge in Israel’s targeting of leaders of Palestinian popular resistance.
We call on you to take effective and public action to end the arrest, detention and mistreatment of Palestinian human rights activists such as Wa’el Al-Faqeeh. Deprived of his liberty and his voice, we ask you to join us in exercising our freedom of speech where he can not by calling for the release of Wa’el Al-Faqeeh and all political prisoners inside Israel’s jails.
What you can do to help:
* Contact your representatives asking them to exert pressure on Israeli officials to release Wa’el Al-Faqeeh and to end the unlawful imprisonment of human rights defenders. Click here to send a letter to Catherine Ashton, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of the European Union. Click here to send a letter to the American consulate in Jerusalem, or use the sample letter here to send to your respective representative. You can find a list of embassies and their contact information here.
* Host an event, or hold a demonstration or action in your area to raise awareness, support – and even funds – for Al-Faqeeh and all political prisoners. You could organise a film night, street projection, “Free the Prisoners” party, or a demonstration outside an Israeli embassy or consulate in your country. Organisers can contact palreports@gmail.com for media support.
* Wa’el Al-Faqeeh faces military court on the January 19. His legal defence comes at a high price and contributions to his legal fund support both Al-Faqeeh and his family. You can make a donation to the Free Wa’el fund here.
You can follow updates on Al-Faqeeh’s case and get in touch with his supporters by joining the Free Wa’el Facebook group here.
Al-Faqeeh teaching youth about the BDS campaign at the Tanweer Centre, Nablus
Political prisoner Wa’el Al-Faqeeh has been detained without charge by Israeli authorities for over a month, and is now facing trial in Salim military court on the 19th of January. The abduction of Al-Faqeeh from his home, along with 4 other activists in the Nablus region, marked the beginning of the recent surge in Israel’s targeting of leaders of Palestinian popular resistance.
On the night of December 9th 2009 over 200 Israeli soldiers entered the northern West Bank city of Nablus. Their mission: to round up a list of local grassroots activists, whose promotion of popular struggle Israel had no answer for. Amongst those taken was 45 year old Wa’el Al-Faqeeh, when 50 soldiers stormed his home, pointing their weapons at him and his family as though the man they had come to arrest embodied a formidable threat. But those who know Al Faqeeh know that he worked tirelessly – and on a largely voluntary basis – in defense of human rights and the promotion of the strategies and philosophy of Palestinian non-violent resistance.
Al-Faqeeh’s membership to the Tanweer Palestinian Cultural Enlightenment Forum board of directors was a vehicle for the initiation of the BDS (Boycott, Sanctions, Divestment) campaign at An-Najah University as well as countless cultural, social and educational projects for Nablus youth, championing the belief of freedom through the fulfilment of learning and expression. His organisation of Iraq Burin’s weekly demonstrations through the months of July to September played an instrumental role in the return of 30 dunums of land to the village annexed by neighbouring settlements and Israeli military forces. Al Faqeeh enthusiastically supported the cause of Palestinian farmers working under constant threat from settler and military violence, organising the annual olive harvest in the Nablus region and working year-round to defend agricultural communities’ connection to their land and economic livelihood.
His grassroots outreach across the political spectrum inspired all those he met and worked with, but Al-Faqeeh has suffered greatly for it. On more than one occasion he was threatened by Israeli officials for his involvement in popular struggle, severely limiting his movements for fear of arrest. This fear was realised on the 9th of December, when he was arrested and imprisoned by the Israeli military, joining 8,000 other Palestinian political prisoners like him.
Upon his arrest Al-Faqeeh was taken to Huwara Detention Centre and transferred the following day to Jelemeh Prison in Haifa ,where he is now held. This is illegal under the IV Geneva Convention, which outlaws the transfer of prisoners from occupied territory to the state of the occupying force. He has been held for over a month under interrogation without charge, on the basis of Israeli officials’ alleged possession of secret evidence against him. His court date was finally announced on January 12, summoning him to appear before Salim military court in the northern West Bank on January 19.
4 other grassroots activists from seized in raids on their homes in Nablus the same night, including Mayasar Itiany and her brother Abdul-Nasser Itiany, both active in prisoners rights organisations, and Mussa Salama who is involved in the Labour Committee of Medical Relief for Workers. Abdul-Nasser Itiany has since been placed under administrative detention, a fate often reserved for Palestinian activists for whom investigators cannot gather sufficient evidence to make a specific charge.
Abdullah Abu Ramah, head of Bil’in’s Popular Committee Against the Wall & Settlements, was seized by Israeli forces the night after the arrest of Al-Faqeeh. The international exposure and support gained as a result of Bil’in’s peaceful demonstrations against the illegal Apartheid Wall have culminated in a violent backlash on the supporters of the village’s popular struggle and the arrest of several of its leaders. Several other high profile Palestinian activists have been targeted in recent months, including the arrest and detainment of Jamal Juma’, head of Stop The Wall campaign and the administrative detention of Mohammad Othman, a youth co-ordinator for Stop The Wall. Othman’s case was similar to Al-Faqeeh’s in the prelude to his trial, his interrogation period spanning a significant length (2 months) and being held on the basis of secret evidence, unaccessible to Othman or hiw lawyers. Key players in the demonstrations and popular struggle in the villages of Ni’lin and Al-Masara have been subject to night raids, arrest and detainment in recent months also.
Almost all prisoners in Israel’s jails face some form of torture or mistreament during their arrest and detention. Their conditions of detention are extremely poor, and in some cases, life-threatening. Al-Faqeeh urgently requires medical attention, his lawyer reporting that his physical condition has worsened considerably during his detention as he suffers from high blood pressure and painful mouth ulcers. Prisoners report that provision of medical treatment is often used as another form of coercion against them by the prison authorities. When administered treatment is woefully inadequate, with Acamol (the Israeli version of aspirin) generally being the only form of medicine issued to detainees.
Arbitrary detention by Israel of human rights defenders is immoral, illegal and must be stopped. Messengers of peace such as Al-Faqeeh pose no threat to Israel: his ability to mobilize and inspire oppressed Palestinians only endangers the Israeli occupation by exposing the regime’s brutal and oppressive nature.
As part of a recent surge in popular protest in the West Bank, about 300 demonstrators occupied and blocked the main road in near the Halamish settlement for over two hours. The demonstrators, twenty of which were injured by rubber-coated bullets, protested recent land grabs.
About 300 people took to the street today in the West Bank village of Nabbi Saleh, north-west of Ramallah, in protest of recent land grab by the adjacent Jewish-only settlement of Halamish. The protesters occupied and blocked the main street leading to the settlement, and amidst clouds of tear gas and whizzing rubber-coated bullets, managed to hold it for over two hours. A group of demonstrators also managed to reach the area that was recently taken over by settlers.
Settlers who came down from Halamish threw stones and shot live rounds of demonstrators. Soldiers who were present took no actions to stop them. Following the demonstration the army invaded Nabbi Salleh, where clashes ensued.
Twenty of Nabbi Saleh’s residents were struck by rubber-coated bullets, and dozens suffered from tear gas inhalation.
Bassem Tamimi, one organizers of the demonstration said that “For three weeks we have been prevented from reaching our land for because of the settlers who occupied it. In any reasonable place, we would be allowed to just drive them out by force, but they have the army on their side even though the law is on our side. Under the occupation we are not even allowed to merely protest”.
Demonstrations were also held today in N’ilin, Bil’in – where a journalist and a demonstrator were lightly injured, and in alMaasara where the army invaded the village.
