Category: Journals - Page 21 - International Solidarity Movement

Reduced to a number – robbing Palestinians of their humanity

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

Palestinians in the closed military zone in occupied al-Khalil (Hebron) are reduced to a mere number. Imagine ‘loosing’ your identity to a foreign occupying army not only taking your land, but attempting to take your personality, your identity, your whole existence; reducing you to a simple number on a piece of paper, stripping you of your humanity.

This is everyday reality for Palestinians in the area declared a ‘closed military zone’ by the Israeli forces, an area that has just recently been expanded and now covers all of the Tel Rumeida neighborhood and the tiny piece of Shuhada Street that has not yet fallen prey to Israeli attempts of continuous illegal annexation. At Shuhada checkpoint, the main checkpoint leading from the H1-area supposedly under full Palestinian control into this ‘closed military zone’, Palestinians are subjected to the all too common Israeli forces’ humiliation, delays, and ‘security-checks’. At any of the checkpoints leading into the ‘closed military zone’, all Palestinians are reduced to a mere number on a list of ID-numbers and names.

Any sign of humanity – erased with the humanity of the Palestinians, who are not persons, but just another number on a long list of numbers. At any of the checkpoints leading into the ‘closed military zone’, Palestinians are one of those numbers – and without a number, they’re nothing. It’s as simple as that, with a number, registered with a foreign occupying army as a resident in your own home, your own neighborhood, you can make it through the checkpoint. Being a number, you might – and only might, as soldiers at the checkpoint can virtually do whatever they want with complete impunity – be allowed to go to your own home.

But being without even a number, not having one’s existence reduced to this mere number on a list, a Palestinian is nothing, nothing. You’re either reduced to a number, or you’re not, not at all. You don’t exist, you don’t have the ‘right’ to go to your home, a ‘right’ being something that the occupying army is almost priding themselves for giving you, for being so nice to even permit a Palestinian to become this mere number on a list. As a number, you might be allowed to go home, to bring your shopping through the checkpoint to your house, as a child to ride your bicycle and eventually be allowed to pass the checkpoint with it. A number might be allowed to pass the checkpoint to go to school or back home after school finishes, to reach their home when their sick, or be carried out of the checkpoint in medical emergencies, as ambulances are not allowed on the ‘settler-only’-road.

A number is ‘privileged’ by the Israeli occupying army to do all these things, to be granted the slightest possible pieces even of the most basic human rights. But a nothing, a no-one, someone that didn’t make it on the list? A father visiting his son and grandchildren. A daughter visiting her sick mother. Siblings coming to congratulate for a birthday or new-born baby, to celebrate a new family member, a family birthday, an important holiday, that traditionally is celebrated with the extended family. A nothing is no-one, nothing is allowed, nothing is possible.

A nothing will be denied at the checkpoint by soldiers ‘just following orders’, soldiers who, if hearing the slightest doubt due to their inhumane, racist and apartheid actions, will refuse that they’re political. In a situation where a soldiers mere presence as the occupying army at a checkpoint denying Palestinians the right to reach their homes or loved ones is a political statement. A statement of support of the apartheid and racist regime that calls itself the ‘only democracy in the Middle East’. Soldiers would defend the action of only checking and numbering Palestinian residents with ‘Israelis don’t pass from this checkpoint’ – openly admitting their racist and apartheid actions, but choosing to defend them as ‘just following orders’. Actions that any human being must recognized are non-defendable, non-excusable – and solely, openly and deliberately aimed at annihilating the existence of a people.

Anyone defending these kind of actions, of reducing a group of Persons to numbers on a list, and trampeling the mere existence of the one’s not dehumanized and humiliated like this, with their feet making them nothing, denying their whole existence; can not hide behind a uniform or orders, or excuse their behaviour. Reducing people, persons with wishes and hopes, dreams and fears, to a number, robbing them of their identity and personality – their humanity – to mere numbers on a list, or even a nothing, a no-one.

First day in Al-Khalil

6th September 2016 | International Solidarity Movement, al-Khalil team | Hebron, occupied Palestine

Today was my first full day as an ISM’er in Al-Khalil (Hebron).

A regular part of our work is to monitor Israeli checkpoints beside schools in the mornings since the teachers ask for an international presence. Often there can be problems with violence between Israeli forces and Palestinian children. Another reason ISM is there, is to count the number of school children using the checkpoint, to see how many children are suffering from this daily stress, which sadly, is part of normal life under the occupation. The data we collect is passed on to NGOs who collects data on children in the whole of Palestine. It is necessary for children living in the H2 area to pass through this checkpoint to reach their school. The Palestinian children are often subjected to intimidation and harassment as they are searched in claustrophobic rooms within the highly militarized structures. This morning i was monitoring Qeitun checkpoint with two other ISM’ers.

Around 120 children, mostly boys, passed through the checkpoint in the first half an hour. There were clearly armed Israeli solders stationed in heavily armored towers overlooking the checkpoint, creating an intimidating atmosphere. There was an older Palestinian man encouraging the children to go through the checkpoint as a few of them were nervously waiting in front of them. In the midst of our counting of children we heard shouting from around the corner and saw a group of Palestinian children being chased by heavily armed Israeli border police, although we were in H1, out of Israeli jurisdiction. A few of the children thew stones towards the invading border police and before we knew what happened a soldier lobbed a stun grenade directly at the children. This grenade exploded a few metres in front of the children standing at an entrance to a junior school. I was down the street but the loud noise really reverberated through my body and sent my heart racing. It was the first time I had experienced this kind of weapon and moments after, I was still terrified. The grenade sent the children fleeing in all directions and one of them dropped his school bag. An Israeli soldier stole his bag and took it with him. As he walked past us an ISM activist asked him “why have you taken his school bag?’, the soldier muttered “to check it”. Of course this was a lie as they did not open it and I found it infuriating that heavily armed, grown men would steal the school bag of a child as some sort of immature intimidation technique.

Some minutes later few stones were thrown from the top of a building, neither us or the Israeli border police could see who was throwing them, but the border police responded with yet more stun grenades. One of the soldiers was incompetently rushing to throw so many that he missed one and it bounced off the building towards him- and it sent him scampering away. By this point there were very few children left in the street and they were hundreds of meters away from the checkpoint. But the altercation had clearly infuriated the border police and they began launching scores of tear gas canisters down the street at the remaining children. We were ushered inside a school by some teachers as we were very close to where the canisters landed. It was terrifying to hear the loud pop of the canisters launching and not knowing if they were about to land on top of you. They are heavy steel cylinders and a direct hit, especially on your head, would do some serious damage- never mind the gas that stops the children breathing and burns their eyes. In all we counted at least 6 stun grenades and 16 tear gas canisters used by the Israeli border police against the unarmed Palestinian school children. The teachers in the school told us that this was a regular occurrence and asked how they could teach students with this going on as it not only disrupts lessons and scares children in the school, but it also stops many children from attending in the first place.

It is clear to me that the soldier’s actions were not in self defense, as they had heavily defended battlements in which to remain in. Instead they choose to escalate the violence by attacking the children in order to assert their dominance and intimidate the children. My experiences of Al-Khalil thus far have proven that the occupation and militarization of large parts of the city are not for the purposes of ‘security’, as the Palestinians here are friendly and welcoming to all religions and everyone. Instead the soldiers aim to harass Palestinians and disrupt their way of life as much as they can, meaning that a normal childhood and opportunity to focus on their education is impossible.

By ISM-activist; “Hugh”

video: Border Police steals Palestinians schoolbag

Control and ID-check of Palestinians

23th August 2016 | International Solidarity Movement, al-Khalil team | Hebron, occupied Palestine

As a Palestinian you have to have your ID on you at all times, otherwise you may get detained or arrested. In Palestine they have 3 different kinds of ID. The green ID is for people who live in the West Bank. People who have this ID are not allowed to go to Gaza or Jerusalem. Then there is the green ID for people who live in Gaza, who are not allowed to be in the West Bank or in Jerusalem. And the last one is the Blue ID which is for Palestinians who live in Jerusalem, and they are not allowed to be in Gaza, a permit is needed.

Imagine yourself going to buy a few groceries, and before you leave you have to remember to take your passport with you. This is how it is for Palestinian people every day. Just the fact that you always have to have your ID on, shows clearly how controlled the Palestinian people are, and how there are huge difference on your rights, depending on what family they were randomly born into; Israeli or Palestinian.

Just imagine that soldiers can stop you any time, and there is nothing you can do about it. Not only constantly checked at checkpoints, but also randomly on the street. That’s called a flying checkpoint, and If the soldier is holding your ID you can’t go anywhere , it can be everything from minutes to hours, of them holding you from leaving.

Asking Palestinians how many times they have been detained, they normally don’t give a number, because its uncountable. When you are 16 you receive the ID, so if are younger than 16, but look older, the Israeli military can claim to see your birthday certificate. This is very humiliating, and its often just to show off their power. One of the Palestinian men explains how there is no doubt that it’s not for creating safety, but just pure harassment, when they take their IDs for hours without even checking it. A situation where they are without any kind of rights, and they face comments like:“Would you like to see your god” or “Are you hungry? You should eat something before you die”, which shows how they have no respect for them. And they express how powerless you can feel , cause you know they can do whatever they want without any punishment.

Israeli forces force Palestinian to lift up his shirt during a 'control' — Israeli forces force Palestinian to lift up his shirt during a ‘control’

Security or humiliation?

20th August 2016 | International Solidarity Movement, al-Khalil team | Hebron, occupied Palestine

People queuing up in lines at the checkpoint, a father with his wife, two toddlers and a baby in the arms. Trying to pass.

A soldier yells at the mother who is carrying the baby to go back, “akhora. AKHORA!”, with a loud voice, as if he is in a battle. She gets scared. The man is trying to tell the soldiers that she is his wife and these are his kids.

He keeps yelling.

“AKHORA!”

People outside stand in silence, scared. Some try to tell the soldier they are together. But the helmet upon his head prevents any human sound from reaching him.

The same soldier few days ago yelled at another girl, she panicked and ran away. He bravely he cocked his gun, she was trapped and in a panic, ran to her mother. He put his gun down when he saw a group of tourists wondering what is going on. The girl passed with her mom.

Thanks to the group who were there at the right place, and at the right time.

“It’s not very quiet there” – the invasion of Al Fawwar refugee camp

Tuesday morning at 8:30 we received a call from Badee Dwaik, one of the co-ordinators of Human Rights Defenders, a Palestinian human rights group, about the unfolding situation in Al Fawwar refugee camp.

Around 2:00 that morning, hundreds of Israeli soldiers invaded the village. Claiming they were looking for weapons, they went from home to home, searching each one. In homes that they searched, the soldiers destroyed furniture and made a mess. Their invasion caused clashes, as young Palestinian men and boys rushed out to confront them with rocks.

As we drove close to the village, we could see a roadblock and multiple Israeli Army jeeps stationed and not letting any cars in. We saw a UN car and spoke to the drivers, they too were denied entry. X, my fellow activist, and myself, decided to try getting into the village. The soldiers at the roadblock stopped us and asked us who we were. Knowing that the UN were denied entry and that in greatest likelihood if they were denied entry then our group would face the same treatment, we told the soldiers we are tourists. One of them looked at us and asked “OK, but are you sure you want to go in? It’s not very quiet there”. We feigned ignorance and asked the soldier what is going on. He said he can’t tell us, but advised us not to go in.

We said we would like to go in anyways. I resisted the urge to tell the soldier that the reason things were “not very quiet” in the village was because he and his comrades were attacking it.

As we entered into the village, we ran into a group of soldiers from Hebron. We knew each other well from previous encounters, especially settler tours and their forays into H1. They were very hostile and tried to stop us from filming, by blocking and attempting to grab my camera. They snapped at Palestinians to get into their homes or to keep moving. We could hear gunshots and sound bombs exploding in further areas of the village.

Pretty soon, we saw some Palestinian men throwing rocks at soldiers. The soldiers opened fire on them with rubber coated steel bullets, we could hear the loud “bang” noises as we sat behind a wall and observed.

A Palestinian family invited us to their house, and we observed from the rooftop as Israeli soldiers entered people’s houses. Groups about a dozen armed soldiers would enter through the door. Of course the families were not consulted. We visited a home that just about 15 minutes before was searched by the soldiers. We came to room after room of upturned furniture, clothes strewn over the floor, beds and tables flipped over. We witnessed a group of soldiers come into a home of a Palestinian family, a big dog with them.

Sometimes the houses were searched, but not always. During other times the soldiers went on the rooftops and made themselves comfortable. They were using these people’s homes- with the families still inside- as impromptu military vantage points. Had there been any real fighting- ie the people being victimized actually having weapons and being able to shoot back- these families would have been in great danger. Deliberately endangering civilians is a war crime.

We witnessed a group of Israeli soldiers throw sound grenades and gas grenades at school-age Palestinian children who were throwing stones at them. They also pointed their guns at these kids, as well as at us, in an attempt to intimidate. The soldiers swore at the Palestinian family who allowed us to stand on their roof and observe, yelling “sharmuta” (whore) at them.

Later, we witnessed clashes in another part of the village between older Palestinian youth and men, and the Israeli Army and a special unit of Border Police forces, who were shooting off round after round of rubber coated steel bullets and live ammo. There were three International Committee of the Red Crescent (ICRC) ambulances standing by, and very unfortunately they were kept busy throughout the whole day. By the time the “operation” was over, forty Palestinians were wounded and one seventeen year old boy was dead- shot in the heart with a live bullet. Some people later told us that the soldiers were stopping and detaining these vehicles as they rushed to take the wounded away… if so, it would be another war crime.

Being witnesses to the cruelty and brutality of the soldiers, we also were witnesses to the kindness of the people whom we met in the village. The Palestinian man who with his family allowed us to observe from their roof knew he was taking a big risk, since the military could target him next.

As the siege was progressing and one could hear gunshots and the explosions of sound grenades in the village, the first family we stayed with not only offered us cup after cup of coffee and tea, but later a delicious Palestinian breakfast. Their kids asked again and again to have their pictures taken.

As we walked through some parts of the village when it was safer to do so, people guided us to the places where the soldiers were engaged in their “action”. The second family we visited- whose furniture was trashed by the soldiers- also offered us drinks and warmly welcomed us.

How they were able to maintain their hospitality and kindness in the midst of this horrific event is beyond me. I really have no idea how I would have responded in their place if I had guests come at a time like this. Tragically, such raids happen there on more or less a regular basis. As traumatic as this particular attack was, it was nothing new.

After about six hours there, we had to leave. We could hear the sound bombs and gunshots continuing on our way out. We made sure to hide our memory cards prior to exiting, but the soldiers manning the checkpoint did not even check.

The “operation” was very military well planned out. The village was surrounded from all sides, with soldiers blocking the road leading into the village, and others being staked out in the hills. Small white drones buzzed overhead, taking photos. No one was able to get in (although after about a few hours the UN was allowed passage) and everyone was carefully screened on the way out.

The Army and Border Police I later learned pulled out the next morning, after spending about 24 hours in the village.

The Israeli military had tremendous success- forty wounded and one dead on the Palestinian side, and on the Israeli side, one lightly wounded soldier who was hit by a rock.

A truly resounding military victory. Except that the targets were not uniformed members of an enemy army, or even armed militants. The targets were civilians. Refugees. People already living a life that is economically difficult, who were now hit (again) by this type of calamity.

What happened three days ago was a criminal action. State ordered, and supported and sanctioned and even military made possible by certain powerful governments.

However, it was a crime nevertheless. Hopefully one day justice will come to this land, and events like this will be remembered as history of a tragic past, not the current and ongoing reality of today.

Israeli soldiers harass Palestinian and international human rights workers in Al Fawwar refugee camp.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Us2tYpKWlXM