Demonstrators protesting the deceleration of the Cave of the Patriarchs and Joseph’s Tomb as Israeli heritage sites, manged to block the main road from Jerusalem to Hebron.
In response to the inclusion of the two holy sites in the list of Israeli heritage sites, and fearing that this step paves the way for the cementing of Israeli hold over these places, a demonstration called by the Beit Omar National Committee managed to occupy Route 60 – the main road between Jerusalem and Hebron – and stop all movement in it.
A military checkpoint at the entrance of Beit Ummar control access to Route 60, which, on the vicinity of the village, is fenced off. As demonstrators descended from the village, they toppled the fence between the village and the road. Protesters then continued to gather on Route 60, waving flags and chanting slogans.
Despite the peaceful nature of the demonstration, the soldiers immediately started pushing people violently and using stun grenades, injuring one person. The soldiers then continued to invade the village, which provoked clashes that resulted in the injury of three Palestinians.
On March 9th 2010, The Friends of the Israel Defense Forces, a registered 501-(c)(3) tax-exempt organization that provides support and services to members of Israel’s national army, will be holding a gala $1,000 a plate fundraiser at the Waldorf Astoria. The keynote speaker will be Lt. Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi, IDF Chief of General Staff, who was responsible for the prosecution of last year’s Operation Cast Lead against the people of Gaza. At the same time as the dinner, a broad coalition of local groups will stage a mobile protest outside the hotel to highlight the crimes committed by the IDF during Operation Cast Lead and Israel’s ongoing illegal blockade of the Gaza Strip.
WHO: A broad and diverse tri-state coalition, including peace and Palestine solidarity groups as well as grassroots community organizations and religious institutions. (Complete list below)
WHEN: Tuesday, March 9th, 5-7 P.M.
WHERE: Starting 53rd ST. and Lexington Ave. then moving through the neighborhood.
VISUALS: Hundreds of protesters dressed in black, carrying placards detailing war crimes and names of civilians killed by the IDF, and marching silently around the blocks near the Waldorf Astoria.
Approximately 50 Palestinians and 20 Israelis and Internationals gathered in the West Bank village of An Nabi Salih to protest the further appropriation of their land and natural spring by the illegal Israeli settlement of Hallamish. The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) used tear gas, sound bombs, and rubber-coated steel bullets to disperse the protesters. There was no obvious justification for aggression from the Israelis. The Children of An Nabi Salih
Hallamish, illegal under international law like all Israeli settlements, has expanded toward and is increasingly taking control of Palestinian lands. A small group of Palestinians gathered after Friday prayer to make a symbolic march toward these lands. Men, women and children marched away from An Nabi Salih and descended into a valley towards their fields. IOF soldiers began firing tear gas from the road below. The protesters spread out across the side of the mountain and the soldiers advanced, firing tear gas and rubber-coated steel bullets. Several Palestinians and one International suffered injuries from the rubber bullets.
Soldiers surrounded a house on the edge of the village which contained women and children. After firing several tear gas canisters and a sound bomb in the doorway of the home, the soldiers proceeded to enter the village. Over thirty tear gas canisters were launched simultaneously from the top of a specialized IOF vehicle into the yards of villagers, as Palestinian youth resisted the invasion with stones.Tear Gas Tempest
After Palestinians had returned to their homes, the army re-entered the village to fire a final round of tear gas on the peaceful town.
The rubber-coated steel bullet injuries included head wounds on a young protester, and several dozen suffered tear gas inhalation.
The hilltop village of An Nabi Salih has a population of approximately 500 residents and is located 30 kilometers northeast of Ramallah along highway 465. The demonstration protested the illegal seizure of valuable agricultural land and the January 9th 2010 uprooting of hundreds of the village resident’s olive trees by the Hallamish (Neve Zuf) settlement located on highway 465, opposite An Nabi Salih. Conflict between the settlement and villagers reawakened in the past month due to the settler’s attempt to re-annex An Nabi Salih land despite the December 2009 Israeli court case that ruled the property rights of the land to the An Nabi Salih residents. The confiscated land of An Nabi Salih is located on the Hallamish side of highway 465 and is just unfortunately one of many expansions of the settlement since it’s establishment in 1977.
Jewish activist reminds religious extremists (settlers) they are not above religious values.
On 25 February 2010 eight ISM volunteers gathered at the Hebron Municipality building alongside Hebron residents, Israeli activists and other international volunteer groups. Television crews were already interviewing local organizers and political leaders; Israeli activists scrambled to finish the last of their demonstration placards with phrases in Hebrew saying “Open Shuhada Street,” “There is No Holiness in an Occupied City,” and “Ibrahim’s Mosque is a Bi-national holy Site;” Shebab (young Palestinian boys) danced a few steps of dabke, a traditional Palestinian dance, to a popular Arabic song playing from a cell phone projected through a megaphone.
At 2pm, multiple buses appeared in the parking lot below the municipality and both international and Israeli activists were instructed towards a small white bus at the far end. Sitting three to a seat and lining the aisles, we began our half hour, winding and disorienting drive towards the start of the demonstration site. We disembarked from the bus and found shelter from the rain under the covered play area of a school. From the ledge we could see Ibrahim’s Mosque and Israeli settlements.
Israeli military forcefully represses peaceful demonstrators.
At 2:30pm protest placards and flags were held high and we began our decent towards the Shuhada Street checkpoint. After just a few minutes, about 150 meters from the Shuhada Street checkpoint, interactions with the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) began. Sound bombs and then tear gas canisters were rolled into the nonviolent crowd. As media began donning their gas masks and protective helmets, Israeli activists began linking arms to block the IOF’s attempt to force the crowd to retreat. Sound bombs, Arabic and English chants, negotiations with IOF in Hebrew and the call to prayer filled the air.
Forward, retreat, forward further, retreat more. This went on until the line of nonviolent demonstrators was within 10 meters of the Shuhada Street checkpoint. The line was held by Palestinians, internationals and Israelis alike for over half an hour. With face to face contact with the soldiers, we were able to dissuade them from detonating sound bombs into the nonviolent crowd. As the crowd grew bigger and the chain of protestors grew stronger, IOF made the unilateral decision to use violence against the nonviolent demonstration. Without a single rock from the demonstrators, both IOF and Israeli police rushed the crowd, shooting tear gas canisters and throwing sound bombs. The nonviolent crowd of about 100 retreated from the attack by either running back uphill or seeking shelter in a nearby cemetery.
IOF entered the cemetery, panning the overwhelmingly child crowd with their M-16 assault rifles. International activists helped accompany children through the cemetery to safety and repeatedly reminded soldiers that the people they were pointing at were children who were not acting with violence.
Israeli Occupation Forces shoot tear gas and sound grenades at unarmed peaceful demonstrators.
The Popular Committee called an end to the demonstration at 5pm and directed everyone back to the buses. Wet, cold, tired, and eyes burning, internationals, Israelis and Palestinians filled back onto large chartered bus going back to the municipality. Shuhada Street remains closed but friendships between Hebronites, Israeli and international activists have been opened and the sentiments of resistance are shared by all.
Hebron Background:
On Sunday 21 February, Israeli President Netanyahu announced the Tomb of the Patriarchs, also known as the Ibrahim Mosque, as a protected Jewish holy site. This is the 4th holiest Islamic site in the world and has ignited protests from Palestinians. Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas said that this could insight a “religious war”.
The 25 February 2010 protest falls on the 16th anniversary of the Goldstein Massacre.
In 1994, after the Goldstein Massacre where a Jewish gunman shot at least 29 Palestinians worshiping at the Tomb of the Patriarchs Mosque, Shuhada Street was closed to Palestinians. The Israeli military stated that it was closed in fear of retaliation from Palestinians.
After a series of openings and closings the street is now closed to all Palestinians except residents with permits and open to Jewish settlers. Palestinians fear that while permits have been issued to residents that when those expire future residents and subsequent generations will not be issued permits.
Previous to the closing Shuhada Street was a commercial center with many Palestinian shops.
Frequently Asked Questions:
The settlers say they only have 3% of Hebron. They say they’re not allowed to go to H1 or most of H2. Given that they are restricted from the vast majority of the city, why shouldn’t Palestinians be restricted from the tiny portion of H2 that the settlers claim?
Hebron is a city deep inside the Palestinian territories. Israeli settlements in any of these territories are illegal according to the Fourth Geneva Convention. The issue is not that the settlers have only 3% of the city, but rather that they are controlling part of an occupied city.
H1, an area which consists of about 80% of Hebron, is controlled by the Palestinian Authority. H2, the remaining 20%, is controlled by Israel. Israeli settlers, who make up less than 1% of the population of Hebron, control 20% of the city, which is not only incredibly disproportionate but also illegal.
In order to allow the settlers to live in a small part of H2, the Israeli army exerts control over a much larger proportion of the city in order to secure a buffer zone for the settlement. While the settlers themselves do not travel around most of H2, the Israeli military does patrol the entirety of H2, thereby placing restrictions on Palestinian movement throughout this part of Hebron. If Israeli settlers were allowed to walk in all of H2, the Israeli military would likely control an even larger percentage of the city in order to keep them safe.
Although H2 is a relatively small portion of the city, it is Hebron’s true city centre where the industrial and commercial zones, as well as the most important landmarks, are located. H2 is an important passageway between the northern and southern parts of the city. Therefore, restricting movement in H2 significantly affects the freedom of movement of all residents of Hebron.
The Israeli military says that Palestinians are allowed to walk anywhere other than Shuhada Street. Is it really such an inconvenience to have one street closed to pedestrians?
It is not for the Israeli military to decide whether it is convenient or inconvenient for the Palestinians, yet this attitude of entitlement and legitimacy is the by-product of prolonged foreign occupation of a local population. The Palestinian residents of Hebron are not considered or consulted regarding whether or not the closure of their streets is in their security interest. Rather, the Israeli army makes decisions on their behalf and thus dictates the way Palestinians are allowed to live in their city. Shuhada Street is Hebron’s main street; traveling on it and crossing over it are essential to vibrant life and commerce in the area.
Wasn’t Shuhada Street closed as a response to terrorism?
No. Shuhada Street was initially closed to Palestinian shops and vehicular traffic in 1994 after the Israeli settler Baruch Goldstein killed 29 and injured 150 Palestinians when he opened fire in the Ibrahimi Mosque (Tomb of the Patriarchs) during prayers. The army cited fear of Palestinian revenge attacks as its rationale for closing the street. This main artery of the street and the former sight of the market place was reopened to traffic (but not commerce) in 1997 in accordance with the Hebron Protocol. In 2000, Shuhada Street was closed completely to traffic and partially to pedestrians. The street was effectively “sterilized” in 2002 by closing it off to all forms of all Palestinian movement.
One week following the victory forcing Israel to begin rerouting the path of the Wall, and under the shadow of an unprecedented wave of repression against the popular struggle, over a thousand protesters took part in a demonstration at the west Bank village of Bil’in, marking five years of struggle there. At the height of the demonstration dozens of protesters stormed the Barrier, toppled some 40 meters of it and crossed to village’s lands. Protesters also managed to take over a military post adjacent to the path of the Wall for a short time.
In a show of support of the popular struggle and the village of Bil’in, hundreds from all across the West Bank joined the demonstration today, as well as many Israeli and international activists. Among the many supporters were also the mayor of Geneva, Nabil Sh’ath, Mustafa Barghouthi and Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad who said that popular resistance like the one employed in Bil’in can tip international public opinion against the Occupation.
During the demonstration two demonstrators were lightly hurt. One was struck with a tear-gas projectile in the leg and another was shot in the stomach by a rubber-coated bullet.
“The Israeli court had already ruled two years ago that the Wall here should be rerouted, but it is our struggle, not their court, that forces the Army to implement this decision now” Said Mohammed Khatib, an organizer from the village. “The International Court of Justice in the Hague ruled that the Wall should be dismantled in its entirety, and not just partially like the Israeli court had ordered. Today the demonstrators made an important step towards the implementation of this decision” Khatib added.
Last week, 2.5 years after an Israeli Supreme Court decision deeming the path of the Wall on the lands of Bil’in illegal, preliminary infrastructure work to reroute the barrier in accordance with the ruling has finally began. Since the ruling, the state has twice been found in contempt of court, for having not implemented the decision.
Roughly 680 dunams of the 2,000 dunams currently sequestered by the Wall will be returned to the village following the court-ordered rerouting of the trajectory. While the rerouting is viewed as a victory, demonstrators vowed protest will continue until the Occupation is over and the Wall is dismantled in its entirety.
Demonstrations against the Wall and settlement expansion also took place today in the villages of alMa’sara, south of Bethlehem, Ni’ilin and Nabi Saleh, where 10 protesters were hit by rubber-coated bullets, including a Swedish national who was struck in the mouth.
