Category: Nablus - Page 25 - International Solidarity Movement

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.”

Palestinian kidnapped by Israeli forces in Awarta

16th June 2014 | International Solidarity Movement, Nablus team | Awarta, Occupied Palestine

At approximately 2:00 AM on the 15th June, Israeli soldiers conducted a night raid in the village of Awarta near Nablus, which was one of a series of raids and closures carried out by Israeli forces, following the disappearance of three Israeli settler youth close to al-Khalil (Hebron). Palestinian witnesses state that over 50 Israeli solders surrounded the village.

During the operation around 20 Israeli military personnel forced entry to, and stormed the home of Sameer Abu Shayb. Palestinian residents state that the soldiers were aggressive and had their faces covered. Sameer was then handcuffed and interrogated at his home over the phone by a commanding officer, for approximately 15 minutes. Sameer was not accused of any offence, but was then taken outside, blindfolded, and abducted by Israel forces.

This is the sixth time that Sameer has been imprisoned in recent years, totalling approximately 6 months.

He has never been formally accused of an offence and has never been presented with any evidence to justify his repeated detentions. Sameer formerly ran a graphic design shop but was forced to close due to this harassment. Three and a half years ago Israeli soldiers broke into his office, stole a PC and camera, and broke a printer and other merchandise. The property has never been returned, nor has he received compensation.

During the the night over 80 Palestinians were abducted by Israeli forces throughout the West Bank, in an operation that has been described by the Palestinian Authority as a form of collective punishment.

Palestinian murdered by Israeli forces in Huwarra

4th June 2014 | International Solidarity Movement, Nablus team | Huwwara, Occupied Palestine

In the late hours of Monday evening, Israeli forces executed 30-year-old, father of two, Alaa’ Mohammed ‘Awadh, at Za’tara checkpoint, in southern Nablus.

The Israeli army claimed that a Palestinian gunman was shot dead after he injured an Israeli police officer in the leg. The villagers of Huwwara stated their amazement at the version released by the border police; Alaa’ was the owner of a phone shop in Huwarra and not politically affiliated.

The taxi driver stated that Alaa was standing next to the taxi, unarmed, when Israeli soldiers opened fire. A relative of the victim said that Alaa’ arrived at the checkpoint to collect material for his shop.

According to multiple sources, the Israeli military prohibited Red Crescent paramedics from reaching Alaa’. The Israeli army seized his body for “security reasons”, loaded him on into a military vehicle for ‘investigation’.

Yesterday, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) sent a call for a neutral and impartial investigation into the death of Alaa’.

At dawn, Israeli soldiers stormed the village of Huwwara, ransacking the victim’s home, those of his relatives, and his shop, interrogating his parents, his brother and the taxi driver. After the arrival of the military, youth of Huwwara village tried to drive out Israeli forces by throwing stones while Israeli soldiers fired their weapons. One youth was arrested, though his identity is currently unknown. The shops around the village have closed their doors in protest.

At approximately 19:30 yesterday evening, the body was finally handed back to the family, after a short time, the Alaa’s body was transferred to Rafidiah hospital in Nablus.

According to one of the doctors who conducted the autopsy, the majority of Alaa’s wounds were to his chest, abdomen, and both thighs. Alaa’s body held approximately 14 bullet wounds, including a serious wound to the heart and both lungs. His left arm had multiple fractures and a 10×7 cm wound in his left leg. Two fingers were missing on his right hand, and two toes missing from his right foot. Their was also a large wound on the back of his neck.

The funeral march from Nablus to Huwwara (photo by ISM).

Eight shebab [youths] kidnapped in Asira al-Qibliya

2nd June 2014 | International Women’s Peace Service | Asira al-Qibliya, Occupied Palestine

At around 2 am on Sunday night, five Israeli military jeeps, three large military vehicles, and some 30 soldiers on foot arrived in the village of Asira al-Qibliya (south of Nablus). In total silence, they started entering Palestinian houses without knocking on their doors first.

That night the Israeli army raided 10 houses, ransacking them with the excuse of ‘searching for guns’. They didn’t find any.

The soldiers kidnapped (‘arrested’) a young man from every house they visited. While two were released soon after, eight remain detained:

Jihad Hammad Ashier, 21
Mohammed Fouas Saleh, 20
Mohammed Abde Ruhan, 20
Sari Bhassam Asari, 21
Brothers Nehmer Fateh Nijim, 22 and Nahsem Fateh Nijim, 25
Mhoattasem Mohammed Salehm, 26
Khaled Ahmad, 24

Images from Asira al-Qibliya facebook page

These attacks on peaceful villagers followed the same pattern: the soldiers would first break the door to enter the house; lock every family member, including the children, in one room, and take their mobile phones away so they wouldn’t call for help; then they would kidnap one young man from each house and eventually leave.

In the house of Khaled Ahmad, his mother had heard the soldiers breaking the first door, so she asked them to wait a bit so that she could get dressed and open the second door herself, but they didn’t listen. Instead, the occupation soldiers broke the second door too and violently pushed Khaled’s mother away. In almost no time, 25 soldiers were inside the house. Khaled’s mother got scared and sick, and asked them if she could get a glass of water, but they refused.

Khaled’s 10-year-old brother has been waiting fearfully for the return of his elder sibling; the family had told him that Khaled had gone to drink coffee and smoke a cigarette with the soldiers and that he would be back soon. The child has been waiting by the door ever since.

Villagers say that the military vehicles came from the Asira-Burin road, while foot soldiers walked down from the nearby illegal Israeli colony of Yitzhar.

The soldiers left at around 5 am. Two hours later, they phoned the families to tell them that the kidnapped shebab [youth] were being detained at Huwwara checkpoint (south of Nablus). They then hung up.

All the shebab have been arrested without any reason given. The families are waiting for their safe release.

This latest attack on Asira al-Qibliya follows numerous previous ones, when the Israeli occupation army terrorized the village with a full arsenal of arms, from steel bullets to sound grenades; threatened children with attack dogs; kidnapped shebab; ransacked people’s homes; and otherwise provoked them.

Photo story: Palestinians march in Tulkarem to defend their right of return

31th May 2014 | International Solidarity Movement, Nablus team | Tulkarem, Occupied Palestine

On the morning of the 31st of May, several buses filled with Palestinian and international activists from across the West Bank gathered in Tulkarem to march towards the Natanya checkpoint, used only by the Israeli military forces.

Political groups, Palestinian civil society and Popular Resistance Committees named this action as the “March of Return”. Their aim was to defend their right of return and were united under the following slogan: “Our return is inevitable: Freedom for Al Aqsa (Jerusalem) and the prisoners”.

Once the buses arrived in Tulkarem, the activists marched several hundred meters to arrive at the checkpoint. Several protesters gathered at the gates of the checkpoint and began chanting, others spray-painted messages onto the apartheid wall [declared illegal by the International Court of Justice in 2004], while other activists used heavy craft hammers to damage it.

A few tear gas canisters were shot soon after the demonstration reached the gates of the checkpoint, enough to break up the protesters into two groups. One of these tear gas canisters caused a fire in a nearby field. Then, several “warning” shots were fired into the air with live ammunition and Israeli forces then fired large amounts of tear gas canisters. Tear gas projectiles were fired at the crowd.