Category: Hebron - Page 94 - International Solidarity Movement

Palestinian arrested after filming settlers throwing stones

17th August 2014 | International Solidarity Movement | Occupied Palestine

Yesterday at approximately 5:30 PM in the old city in al-Khalil (Hebron) settlers from the illegal settlement of Beit Hadassah threw rocks and water at Palestinians living on Shalala Street. This is a regular occurance for Palestinian families living close to illegal settlements in al-Khalil. The majority of the time the Israeli military watches from a distance and does not do anything to intervene in the violence and property damage.

One Palestinian, a 35-year old man, documented the stone throwing only to be detained and then arrested by the Israeli military. The man was taken through a yellow gate to an area where Palestinians are restricted from, where the soldiers pushed him around.

The soldiers threw several stun grenades at Palestinians and internationals standing behind the yellow gate, trying to document what was happening through holes of the gate.

Two internationals walked through the checkpoint at the Ibrahimi mosque and down Shuhada street in attempt to find the Palestinian. A group of ten solders and an army jeep stood with two Palestinian men, the man who had been arrested was in handcuffs. A nearby soldier told the internationals that neither of the men was arrested but they were only bringing him the handcuffed man in for questioning, to gather evidence about the settlers who threw stones. After approximately five minutes the solders blindfolded the Palestinian and started walking with him to a nearby army base, Beit Romano. When internationals asked why the man was being blindfolded an Israeli soldier stated, “Because I want to.”

The man was released earlier this morning.

Israeli police beat a Palestinian and confiscated his tractor

13th August 2014 | Operation Dove | at-Tuwani, Occupied Palestine

On August 12th, at approximately 9.45 a.m., near the South Hebron hills area village of at-Tuwani, Israeli Police beat a Palestinian and confiscated his tractor.

The 20-year-old man was driving his tractor, carrying a water tank, from the village of at-Tuwani to Yatta City when the Israeli police stopped him. Palestinian witnesses reported that policemen beat him and sprayed pepper spray into his eyes.

When international volunteers and medical relief arrived on the scene, they witnessed the man lying on the ground and shouting from the pain as two policemen surrounded him.

At 10.00 a.m. the Palestinian was accompanied to the hospital by Palestinian medical relief. After that, the police confiscated the tractor, leaving the water tank in the middle of the road. The police refused to give any explanation about the incident and prohibited the Palestinian man from speaking with his lawyer.

According to B’tselem, “the exercise of illegal force by police officers is a phenomenon characteristic of regimes that are abhorrent, and undemocratic, of the kind that trample on human rights.”

The policy of restriction, checkpoints, closures, arrests and confiscations carried out by the Israeli army and police, combined with the continuous settler’s harassment, denies the Palestinians’ rights of movement, basic sources and rights access and prevents the development of the South Hebron hills area communities.aa

Operation Dove has maintained an international presence in At-Tuwani and South Hebron Hills since 2004.

Video: Israeli soldiers celebrate shooting an 18-year-old

12th August 2014 | International Solidarity Movement | Hebron, Occupied Palestine

On August 9^th in Hebron, Israeli soldiers celebrated shooting an 18-year-old Palestinian youth in the leg with live ammunition.

The Canadian volunteer, Vern, who witnessed the soldier firing, stated, “After the soldiers left the roof, I went to confront them about why they had fired. One of them said to me that he was the one who fired and that he was proud of his actions. He then asked me to take his picture.”

The hospital released a document to the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) stating that the injury of the young man was a gunshot wound to the right calf, and that the injury required surgery under general anaesthetic.

“This is not the first time protesters have been seriously injured or killed while not being a threat to the Israeli military. On Friday (8^th August) in Hebron, 40-year-old Nader Mohammad Edrees was shot in the heart by an Israeli sniper. He died several hours later. This murder was caught on video, and it is clear that Nader was no threat whatsoever when he was killed, in clear contradiction of Israeli military policy and international law.” Stated Issa Amro, Human Rights Defender with Youth Against Settlements (YAS), based in Hebron.

According to Article 147 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, grave breaches against protected people, such as Palestinians, not justified by military necessity and carried out unlawfully and wantonly, include wilfully causing great suffering or serious injury to body or health.

Israeli Human Rights group B’tselem states that, “the army’s open-fire regulations clearly stipulate that live ammunition should not be used against stone-throwers, except in cases of immediate mortal danger.”

Journal: Clashes in Hebron

9th August 2014 | International Solidarity Movement, Vern | Hebron, Occupied Palestine

As ISM volunteers were heading back from al-Masara village yesterday, we were dropped at off at Bab Al-Zawiye, the city center of Hebron. We observed a clash between Palestinian youths and the Israeli army. Youths were throwing rocks and were gunned down with rubber coated steel bullets and live ammunition.

We observed a Palestinian demonstrator shot in the leg. He fell down, and others dragged him to the ambulance. A few minutes afterwards, we observed a man being rushed away by his friends; his body was laid on the top of a car. He was shot in the chest. His name was Nader Muhammad Idris. We learned later that he died.

At least 40 people were wounded that day.

The brutality of the Israeli army never ceases to amaze me. When people appeal to the soldiers, they are ignored. When they peacefully march, they are tear-gassed, deafened with stun grenades or arrested. When they throw rocks, they are shot.

Israel cries that it is a victim of “terrorism”. Yet the terrorism of the occupation in Palestine leaves behind it a regular trail of wounded, maimed, and murdered people.

10-year-old child shot in chest with live ammunition

6th August 2014 | International Solidarity Movement, Khalil team | Hebron, Occupied Palestine

In al-Khalil (Hebron) on Sunday August 3^rd, a 10-year-old Palestinian boy was walking to his home near the illegal settlement of Kiryat Arba when the Israeli military shot him in the chest with live ammunition.

The following day, ISM volunteers went to visit the young boy in al-Mezan hospital. The young boy was in critical condition, and although doctors were able to save his life, the bullet remains in his left lung, as it is too dangerous to remove it.

His father told the ISM volunteers that a relative of the boy witnessed the shooting and that it had been a man in a soldiers’ uniform that shot him, without any visible motive. His father also pointed out that even if there had been a motive, such as if the boy would have been throwing stones, nothing could have justified this shot, which was clearly aimed at the heart of this 10-year-old child.

A funeral for a solder that died in Gaza was held in the Tel Rumeida area of al-Khalil between 1 AM and 3 AM last Sunday evening. The area was under heavy military presence, shop owners were forced to close down their shops early and Palestinians living in the area received orders stay in their homes and turn the lights off. Doctors at al-Mezan hospital have reported that in recent weeks there has been an increase in the number of bullet wounds resulting from live ammunition. Many of these wounds have been in the chest and abdomen, seemingly aimed to kill.