Category: Hebron - Page 97 - International Solidarity Movement

Interview with 15-year-old Awne Shamsiyeh: “the camera is like a weapon, so I can resist non-violently”

29th June 2014 | International Solidarity Movement, Khalil Team | Tel Rumeida, Occupied Palestine

In Al-Khalil (Hebron) in the Tel Rumeida area, 15-year old Awne Shamsiyeh lives with his family.

After the Hebron Agreement (1997), the city was divided into two areas, H1 (supposedly under full Palestinian Authority civil and security control) and H2, (under full Israeli military civil and security control). Since 1974, many illegal settlements occupied land in the area now know as H2.

Awne is one of the many Palestinians living inside H2, door-to-door with Israeli settlers, checkpoints, army bases, and the Israeli military.

Over the years, ISM activists have worked with the Shamsiyeh family and spent time with Awne in Tel Rumeida, who experiences many problems with both settlers and the Israeli military. ISMers met with Awne to interview him, and hear his story of growing up under a military occupation.

How would you describe your daily life in H2?

Living in H2 in al-Khalil is very difficult. The Israeli army and settlers try to prevent us from living a normal life. They interrupt our lives on a daily basis and make it unsafe for us to live here. I never feel safe in H2.

What experiences have you had, living door-to-door with Israeli settlers?

In the beginning I didn’t know how to behave around them. Now I’m 15 and have had a lot of experience so I know how to deal with them. I’ve had so many troubles with them (settlers) but I’ve learned from it and know how to fight them. I’ve even learnt Hebrew just from my fights with the settlers and from talking to the Israeli soldiers.

In what way does the constant presence of the Israeli army affect your daily life?

I like to look at it in a positive way; I have become more brave and I now know how to control my fear. I can speak Hebrew now and I know how to deal with my oppressors.

Awne lives with his parents, Emad and Fayzeh, his two sisters, Madlin (16-years old) and Marwa (11-years old), and his two younger brothers, Mohamed (12-years old) and Saleh (9-years old). The roof of the family is often taken over by settlers who want to enjoy the view and harass the family. There is also a military watchtower, which is still occasionally used, on their roof. Their house has been locked in by a wall covered in zionist graffiti, leaving only one narrow entrance to the house. Next to the wall there is another watchtower, which means the family is totally exposed and being constantly watched by the Israeli military.

A wall covered in graffiti surrounding the home (photo by ISM).

What are your personal experiences with the Israeli army and the settlers?

I will give you one example. A year ago or something, Israeli settlers went on to the roof belonging to my family to look at the view. My family and I went up to them and told them they were trespassing and that they should leave. They started spitting at us and claimed that our house belonged to them. We said “no this is our house”. The settlers were very aggressive and a fight broke out. The Israeli army came and defended the settlers. The settlers beat me and my father. They beat me unconscious so I don’t remember more. But it’s all on video. The soldiers took me in to an army jeep and drove me to Road 60 where they handed me over to a Palestinian ambulance. They don’t allow Palestinian ambulances in H2, not even in cases of life and death.

ISM were present and documented this attack.

Do you know how many times you have been attacked by settlers, detained by the army and arrested?

Fights and troubles with the settlers happen regularly, so I have no idea. The same with detentions, it happens so often, almost every day. I have been arrested four times. The longest arrest lasted for a day in a police station. Usually they take me to the army base and keep me there for some hours.

ISM have documented numerous detentions of Awne.

What are your hopes and dreams?

I have the dream that the occupation will end and all Palestinians will be free. Also I want to be a mechanic when I’m older.

What about fears?

I don’t fear anything but God.

Are you afraid that the settlers or Israeli army will attack your family?

I was only scared the first time I had a problem with them. Since then I’ve never feared them. If the soldiers or settlers come to my home and make trouble and hurt my family, of course I won’t be silent. I will do anything to prevent the attack, to make it as difficult for them as possible. I will always protect my family. But I am not afraid anymore. This is the life here. You can’t go around being scared all the time. For the Palestinians its like a routine, something almost normal.

A few meters from the family home is a checkpoint with one or two soldiers 24 hours a day, leading up to the Tel Rumeida Settlement. The family is often stopped and regularly have their ID checked, even if they are just playing in the street or going to the shop further up the road.

The family home, the militray checkpoint can be seen on the roof of the house in upper left hand corner (photo by ISM). — The family home, a military checkpoint can be seen on the roof of the house in the upper left hand corner (photo by ISM).

What do you do for fun in Tel Rumeida?

There is no fun here. There is always a problem with either the settlers or the Israeli army. Even if we just play football they will interrupt.

How do you personally resist the Israeli occupation?

With my mind! I don’t use violence. If there is a situation with the soldiers or settlers I count to ten and breathe before I react. I use my words to resist, like I told you I’ve learnt Hebrew, so I can talk to them in their language. I also use a camera. The camera is like a weapon, so I can resist non-violently. With video and photos I can expose what is happening here to me and all Palestinians.

Do you have anything else you want to share?

Just that everywhere I go there seems to be trouble. At the moment I have a summer job in Azaria in Israel, and after I came the army started to raid a lot of Palestinian houses in the village. It’s like the trouble follows me.

VIDEO: Palestinian shepherd detained by Israeli soldiers

29th June 2014 | Operation Dove | Saddith Thala, Occupied Palestine

On June 27th, Israeli soldiers detained a Palestinian shepherd from the South Hebron Hills village of Saddith Thala. He was accused of throwing stones towards a setter’s car, passing on the Bypass road 317. He was released, as there was no evidence to support the charges.

A Palestinian shepherd and a group of children were drawing water from a Palestinian owned well nearby the illegal settlement of Carmel. While they were crossing the bypass road 317, settlers saw them and immediately called the Israeli soldiers. When the army arrived, they stopped and detained the only adult in the group of shepherds, and accused him of throwing stones in the direction of the road. At about 2pm, when Palestinians from the South Hebron Hills Popular Resistance Committee and international volunteers arrived, the shepherd was handcuffed by a plastic band and had been waiting an hour in the sun for the police to arrive.

After asking for explanations from the soldiers, a Palestinian member of the Popular Struggle Committee released the hands of the shepherd, cutting the handcuffs to allow him to pray. Palestinians and internationals reiterated to the soldiers their duty to show evidence and to consider the shepherd’s declaration of innocence and not only the settlers’ unfounded accusations. At 3pm the detained Palestinian was release and free to go back home.

The well from which the children were drawing water, lies between the illegal settlement of Carmel and Ma’on, This an area where the Palestinian population are constantly subjected to harassment, acts which prevent them from accessing their own land.

The coordinator of the Committee said: “The South Hebron Hills Popular Struggle Committee watches all violations of the human rights in the area, and we respond with non-violent direct actions.”

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

Pressure on Firing Zone 918 residents continues

24nd June 2014 | Christian Peacemaker Teams | South Hebron Hills, Occupied Palestine

On 15 May 2014, Israeli courts extended the mediation process between the Israeli army and the villages within Firing Zone 918 for another three months. The Israeli army wants to use this area for training. Israeli, Palestinian and international human rights organizations have condemned its bid to expel the villagers a violation of international law, which forbids forced transfer of the indigenous population of an occupied territory unless the occupying power is safeguarding them from an immediate danger.

During the previous period of mediation, the court allowed rehabilitation of damage done by storms, as well as access to the area by international humanitarian organizations. As a result, some development was possible in the area, specifically to the schools in al-Fakheit and Jinba. At the same time, as revealed in an article published on Ha’aretz, army officials admitted using firing zones as a way to deter the growth of Palestinian communities in Area C and to expel Palestinians from where they have lived since before the occupation of the West Bank in 1967.

Since 8 June, the Israeli military has conducted exercises in close proximity to, and on one occasion, inside the village of Jinba. Some weeks before, the army drove armoured vehicles over Palestinian fields close to Jinba and Mirkez, damaging their harvest.

Residents of Jinba told CPT that they received a “solution” to the current legal battle from the Israeli army via their lawyers at the beginning of June. The army asked that all of the Palestinian residents voluntarily leave the area for thirty months so that the Israeli military could conduct its exercises. After that, the Palestinians could return to their homes. The villagers refused the offer, affirming they would not have anywhere to go with all their livestock. Even if the army allowed them back, no one would care for their crops and flocks for that thirty months.

The army is not asking Israeli settlers in the area to leave Firing Zone 918.

Collective punishment in Palestine

22nd June 2014 | International Solidarity Movement| Occupied Palestine

On Thursday 12th of this month, three settler youth disappeared while hitchhiking in the Hebron area of the West Bank. No Palestinian group or organisation has taken responsibility for the disappearance.

15-year-old Mohammad Dudeen was murdered in the early hours of Friday morning (20th) after he was shot with live ammunition by the Israeli military. This was during a raid on his home village of Dura, near the city of Hebron.

Mohammad Dudeen (photo from Defence for Children International Palestine).

Mohammed was not the only youth killed on Friday. The Israeli military raided Qalandiya refugee camp (south of Ramallah) and shot three youths with live ammunition. Mustafa Hosni Aslan, 22-years-old, was shot in the head and died of his wounds later the same day.

Mustafa Aslan at the hospital before he died from his injuries (photo from Maan News).

A Palestinian man in his sixties died of a heart attack on Saturday, 21st, after the Israeli military invaded his home. Hajj Jamil Ali Jaber Souf was at his home in Hares village, near Salfit, when the Israeli military violently broke in and attacked him. One of his nephews stated that the soldiers prevented the family from moving Jabber to a local clinic to receive medial treatment.

The Israeli army invaded the city of Nablus last night at approximately 2AM. The youth took to the streets and clashes ensued as they attempted to drive the soldiers out of the city. Many stun grenades were used throughout the night and a final barrage of tear gas was fired on the youths as the were leaving the city centre at approximately 5AM.

An ISMer in al-Khalil (Hebron): “For the past week in Hebron, there has been a heavy military presence. Solders from the Israeli military have been taking over Palestinian homes for their own use and harassing people in the streets with body searches. Many people have been detained, beaten, and arrested.

Settlers from the illegal settlements walk around armed and have been attacking Palestinians on the streets. Today the Israeli army attacked the residents of the Qeitun neighbourhood in Hebron. They entered several times during the day, but this evening the solders attacked an 11-year-old boy by hitting him on the mouth. They arrested two Palestinians and searched the locals for no reason. The solders continued the violence with property damage, ripping apart a local car under the guise of a ‘search’.”

Last night Israel’s army invaded Ramallah district from three directions – Qalandia, Beituniya and Beit El, reaching as deep as Arafat Square inside the city. Pal Media offices in Baloa’ were raided. In Burj al-Sheikh, the army raided the office of a prisoner that was released in the Shalit exchange deal, and used it as a firing post against youths attempting to repel them from the area. The youths sustained multiple injuries from rubber coated steel bullets. In Batn al-Hawa the army raided a charity building and confiscated computers.

Nablus Street, al bireh, Ramallah (photo by Samer Nazzal).

These are just some examples of life in Palestine over the last nine days. According to Maan News, approximately 370 Palestinians have been arrested since last Thursday. The Israeli military have been brutal in their tactics of collectively punishing the citizens of Palestine for the disappearance of three Israeli youths. All over the West Bank, in villages, towns, and cities, Palestinian homes and offices have been raided, cities have been held under siege, people have been injured, arrested, and executed.

In Gaza, Israeli warplanes have targeted several locations and caused extensive property damage and injuries, spreading panic among Palestinian civilians.

The Fourth Geneva Convention, Article 33, 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. Pillage is prohibited. Reprisals against protected persons and their property are prohibited.”

Seventh festival of South Hebron Hills popular resistance

21st June 2014 | International Solidarity Movement, Khalil Team | At Tuwani, Occupied Palestine

Today in the village of At Tuwani, villages and popular committees in the South Hebron Hills and international activists, came together to celebrate the seventh festival of non-violent resistance in this area of the West Bank, and the end of a local children’s summer camp. Each year a summer camp is held in the South Hebron Hills for the children, with many different activities.

“This is the moment to give each other strength, to continue to fight without surrender to violence”, said Hafez Huraini, member of the Popular Resistance Committee of South Hebron Hills.

“We remember together our story and our hard-earned achievements. But we also want to send a strong message to everyone, Palestinians and Israelis, with our example: nonviolence is possible, is effective, and it is the only way to fight for justice, dignity, and peace.” – taken from the invitation by Operation Dove and At Tuwani village council

During the day speeches were held by the Popular Committee in the South Hebron Hills, the Mayor of Yatta, the Governor of Hebron, and international organisations such as ISM, CPT [Christian Peacemaker Team], and Operation Dove. Throughout the day the children showed the crowds what they had been practicing during the summer camp, performing dabke [a Palestinian dance], singing and theater shows. Discussions were also held in the area about experiences of non-violent resistance.

The festival then turned into a protest, moving to a hill in front of the illegal settlement outpost of Havat Ma’on. The children were flying kites and brought balloons, to send a colorful message of peace and justice. The Israeli military and Israeli police stood in front of the outpost and cut off the road. The protest was peaceful and calm, with no violence or arrests.

Settlers in the area often harass villagers from the South Hebron Hills. The settlers are living in the illegal settlements of Suseya, Ma’on, Metsadot Yehuda-Beit Yair, and Karmel. As well as the outposts of Hill 833 (Havat Ma’on), Avigayil, Mitzpe Yair-Magen David, and Lucifer Farm (Yair Farm). The settlers living in this area are highly nationalistic and considered to be some of the most radical settlers in the occupied Palestinian West Bank.

The Palestinians in the South Hebron Hills are often prevented from accessing their fields to pick wheat, lentils, and olives. Settlers also regularly burn the Palestinians harvests and fields. The settlers have also destroyed Palestinian caves and poured poison inside water tanks.

In 1999 residents of this area formed the South Hebron Hills popular committee and began to non-violently resist against the Israeli military. The resistance is daily, consisting of rebuilding demolished homes, continuing to farm in spite of settler violence, and replanting destroyed olive trees. Several Israeli and international organisations support the committee and the people of this area, primarily through accompaniment work and legal aid.

During the last several years many Palestinian families who left the area decided to return to their village.