The past two weeks in Sheikh Jarrah have seen a resurgence of settler harassment and violence against the local Palestinians – beyond low intensity abuse that is the norm.
Verbal sparring and abusive exchanges were sparked when a young settler entered the occupied Al-Ghawe house on August 16th. The teenager then went to the top of house and hoisted a huge Israeli flag up on the roof, next to the oversized menorah, a deliberate act of provocation intended to insult the evicted Palestinian family further.
The Palestinian Al Ghawe house that has been settler-occupied since Aug. 2009
After more shouting from both sides in Hebrew and Arabic, the Israeli settler picked up a very large rock and started threatening to throw it at people. Four of five community members rushed towards him and managed to take the rock away and restrain him. The settler called police, told them a warped version of events, and the usual outcome consequently occurred – one of the shebab was arrested.
After another scuffle between a large group of settlers and local Palestinians, police were again called by the settlers and, as usual, they arrested only a Palestinian and no Israelis despite fact that they had initiated the violence. Ayman Al Ghawe was kept in jail for one week, accused of assaulting three settlers, even though there was no evidence of this and in fact it was him who was left bleeding at the time of his arrest.
Police have also been trying to arrest an eleven year old boy from the area who settlers claim threw glass at “their” house – the house belonging the the Al Ghawe family which they have occupied since August 2nd 2009. He was summoned to a Jerusalem police station but did not attend.
On August 22nd at about 7AM, another Sheikh Jarrah resident called Jad had the tyres on his vehicle slashed. Although there were no witnesses to the attack, the Palestinians strongly suspect that settler youth were behind the attack because many similar incidents have occurred in the past.
The van was used in the course of his work, transporting disabled people. Following this vandalism, ISM volunteers hopefully suggested that the Israeli company which employs him mighty cover the cost of the repair, since he had been the victim of a racist attack. However, the opposite happened. The Israeli company said that they were concerned the vehicle might be set on fire next time – they took the view that Jad’s vulnerability as an inhabitant of a neighbourhood frequently subjected to attacks from settlers made him a liability, and he was fired from his job.
Abdallah Abu Rahmah protects a young girl in Bilin
27 August 2010
The West Bank village of Bil’in has become a symbol of the wider popular resistance movement in Palestine. Abdallah Abu Rahmah, head of Bi’in’s Popular Committee, is one of many key organizers of peaceful resistance that Israel has used legal means to persecute. He was convicted on Tuesday of two out of four charges in an Israeli military court and faces up to ten years in jail. The facts of his case – and what you can do to help put pressure on Israel – are set out below.
Name: Abdallah Abu Rahma Age: 39 years old Incarcerated: Ofer military prison Job: Abdallah worked as a high school teacher at the Latin Patriarchate school in Birzeit near Ramallah until he was jailed. He also owned a chicken farm.
Family: Abdallah is married to Majida and they have three children — seven year-old Luma, five year-old Lian and eight month-old baby Laith.
Why is he imprisoned?
As coordinator of Bili’in’s Popular Committee Against the Wall and Settlements, Abdallah is seen as a threat by Israel because of his prominent role in the nonviolent struggle which has attracted international support. He is being legally persecuted because of the successes of the grassroots nonviolent resistance movement which has been growing steadily for the last 5 years.
EU representatives attended all court hearings over the last 8 months and they did not fail to notice the politically motivated nature of the prosecution. Catherine Ashton, European Union High Representative, said yesterday that the EU views Abdallah as “a human rights defender committed to non-violent protest” and that the EU was “deeply concerned that the possible imprisonment of Mr Abu Rahmah is intended to prevent him and other Palestinians from exercising their legitimate right to protest”.
How and when was he arrested?
At 2am on Thursday 10th December 2009 (International Human Rights Day and exactly one year after receiving the Carl Von Ossietzky Medal from the International League for Human Rights) Abdallah was arrested by Israeli forces.
Several military jeeps surrounded his home the West Bank city of Ramallah. Israeli soldiers broke the door down, extracted Abdallah from his bed, blindfolded him and took him away.
Abdallah Abu Rahmah arrested by the Israeli military
What crime does Israel say he has committed?
Abdallah faced 4 charges. He was kept in prison for 8 months during the trial. On August 24th he was found not guilty of stone-throwing and possession of arms (the latter absurd charge brought by the military prosecution, was based on a collection of spent munitions fired at peaceful protesters by the Israeli army, and displaying by Abdallah to demonstrate the disproportionate violence used to disperse demonstrations in Bil’in.).
But he was convicted of organizing “illegal” demonstrations and of “incitement”.
Abdallah was convicted based only on the forced testimonies of minors who were arrested from their beds at the middle of the night and denied their right to legal counsel – not a single piece of material evidence was presented during the entire trial, despite the fact that the military film every demonstration.
The trial
Under military law, incitement is defined as “The attempt, verbally or otherwise, to influence public opinion in the Area in a way that may disturb the public peace or public order” (section 7(a) of the Order Concerning Prohibition of Activities of Incitement and Hostile Propaganda (no.101), 1967), and carries a 10 years maximal sentence.
Abu Rahmah’s case was the first time the prosecution had used the organizing and participating in illegal demonstrations since the first Intifada. Military law defines illegal assembly in a much stricter way than Israeli law does, and in practice forbids any assembly of more than 10 people without receiving a permit from the military commander.
Diplomats from France, Malta, Germany, Spain and the UK, as well as a representative of the European Union were in attendance to observe the trial. The EU have criticized the conviction. The complete verdict of the Israeli military court can be read online. Click here to read it in Hebrew. It is currently being translated into English and will be available online soon.
Abdallah is likely to be sentenced in the next few weeks – he faces up to ten years in jail. The prosecution is expected to call for a jail term exceeding two years.
Abdallah’s outrageous conviction will be followed by a sentence in the coming weeks. The amount of pressure we will be able to generate in this time could influence Abdallah’s sentence, but will also make clear to Israeli authorities that the repression of the popular struggle does have a political price.
Please use the below template letters prepared by the Popular Struggle Coordination Committee to ask your Minister of Foreign Affairs to send an official inquiry to the Israeli government about Abdallah. Demand that your country apply pressure on Israeli officials to release Abdallah Abu Rahmah and stop targeting popular struggle.
Abdallah’s history of organizing
Abdallah has been a member of the Bil’in Popular Committee since its conception in 2004. As coordinator, Abu Rahmah not only regularly organized and attended the weekly Friday demonstrations but also did the media work for the Bil’in struggle.
Abdallah Abu Rahmah (right) with Ela Bhatt, Jimmy Carter, Desmond Tutu, Fernando H Cardoso, Mary Robinson and Gro Brundtland of the Elders during a visit to Bil'in in August 2009
Abdallah represented the village in engagements around the world to further Bil’in’s cause. He traveled to Montreal in June 2009 to participate in a speaking tour and for the village’s legal case against two Canadian companies building settlements on Bil’in’s land. In December 2008, he participated in a speaking tour in France and traveled to Germany to accept the the Carl von Ossietzky Medal for outstanding service in the realization of basic and human rights, awarded by the board of trustees of the International League for Human Rights on behalf of Bil’in.
In August 2009 he met with internationally renowned human rights defenders like Nobel Peace prize winner Desmond Tutu and former US President Jimmy Carter, as part of a visit by The Elders to Bil’in village.
Treatment in prison
A previous raid targeting Abu Rahmah, on 15th September 2009, was executed with such exceptional violence that a soldier was subsequently indicted for assault.
Abdallah has written that the Ofer prison consists of a collection of tents enclosed by razor wire and an electrical fence, with 22 prisoners in each tent. In winter, he says, wind and rain comes in through cracks in the tent and prisoners are not provided with sufficient blankets, clothes, or other basic necessities. They are also not given enough food, he states.
Abdallah was arrested in his slippers in the middle of the night on 10th December 2009, and wrote on 17th February 2010 that he had still not been provided with proper shoes, nor were his family given permission to supply him with shoes. After repeated requests, he writes, his watch was returned.
The Israeli authorities allow family visits extremely infrequently. The families of prisoners are viewed as security threats. For more on the treatment of prisoners see Adameer, Prisoners’ Support and Human Rights Association.
Abdallah Abu Rahmah
Abdallah’s words:
The afternoon before his arrest on 10th December 2009, Abdallah prepared a speech to be delivered on his behalf at the World Association for Human Rights awards ceremony in Berlin. In his speech, Abdallah wrote:
“Unlike Israel, we have no nuclear weapons, and no army, but we do not want or need those things, because of the justice of our cause, we have your support and with it we know that ultimately we will bring down Israel’s Apartheid Wall.”
“The price I and many others pay in freedom does not deter us. I wish that my two young daughters and baby son would not have to pay this price together with me. But for my son and daughters, for their future, we must continue our struggle for freedom…”
Also, read “A Letter from My Holding Cell”, written by Abdallah from Ofer Military Detention Camp and detailing the conditions in prison and stating:
“From the confines of my imprisonment it becomes so clear that our struggle is far bigger than justice for only Bil’in or even Palestine. We are engaged in an international fight against oppression. I know this to be true when I remember all of you from around the world who have joined the movement to stop the wall and settlements. Ordinary people enraged by the occupation have made our struggle their own, and joined us in solidarity. We will surely join together to struggle for justice in other places when Palestine is finally free.”
Bil’in’s struggle
Perhaps the greatest irony of Abdallah’s case is that he has been found guilty of organizing supposedly “illegal” protests against Israel’s separation wall which itself has been declared illegal by the International Court of Justice and even by Israel’s own High Court in the case of the route it takes through the village of Bil’in.
The West Bank village of Bil’in is located 12 kilometers west of Ramallah and 4 km east of the Green Line. It is an agricultural village, around 4,000 dunams (988 acres) in size, and populated by approximately 1,800 residents.
Starting in the early 1980’s, and more significantly in 1991, approximately 56% of Bil’in’s agricultural land was declared ‘State Land’ for the construction of the settlement bloc, Modi’in Illit.
In 2004, the International Court of Justice ruled that the Wall in its entirety is illegal under international law, particularly under International Humanitarian Law. The Court went on to rule that Israel’s settlements are illegal under the same laws, noting that the Wall’s route is intimately connected to the settlements adjacent to the Green Line, further annexing 16% of the West Bank to Israel.
Despite the advisory opinion, early in 2005, Israel began constructing the separation Wall on Bil’in’s land, cutting the village in half in order to place Modi’in Illit and its future growth on the “Israeli side” of the Wall.
Bilin organizes regular demonstrations against the occupation. Photo: HAMDI / RANI BRONATIn March 2005, Bil’in residents began to organize almost daily direct actions and demonstrations against the theft of their lands. Gaining the attention of the international community with their creativity and perseverance, Bil’in has become a symbol for popular resistance. Almost five years later, Bil’in continues to have weekly Friday protests.
Bil’in has held annual conferences on popular resistance since 2006, providing a forum for activists, intellectuals, and leaders to discuss strategies for the non-violent struggle against the Occupation.
Israeli forces have used sound and shock grenades, water cannons, rubber-coated steel bullets, tear gas grenades, tear gas canisters and 0.22 caliber live ammunition against protesters.
On 17 April 2009, Bassem Abu Rahma was shot with a high-velocity tear gas projectile in the chest by Israeli forces and subsequently died from his wounds at a Ramallah hospital.
Out of the 75 residents who have been arrested in connection to demonstrations against the Wall, 27 were arrested since the beginning of a night raid campaign on 23 June 2009. Israeli armed forces have been regularly invading homes and forcefully searching for demonstration participants, targeting the leaders of the Popular Committee Against the Wall and Settlements.
Three half-demolished shops in Izbet Tabib: the owners hope to stop any further bulldozers from the Israeli company Delek
24 August 2010 | ISM Media
In the small village of Izbet Tabib near Qalqiliya in the north of the West Bank, 27 of the 55 houses have received eviction orders from Israeli authorities. Located in Area C (following the Oslo Accords making it Israeli civilian and militarily controlled), the village has an extremely hard time getting building permits. Furthermore as it is situated near both the annexation wall and several illegal settlements, villagers experiences daily harassment and constant tension.
The wall has annexed large parts of Izbet Tabib’s farm land, and extremist Israeli settlers are in the habit of driving through the village and harassing the inhabitants by shooting in the air or setting olive trees on fire. Also, the Israeli Occupation Forces are almost always present, creating additional trouble and fear for the village. The Popular Committee and others attempting to resist the occupation are especially targeted by the Israeli authorities in an attempt to repress this resistance.
A case in point is that of the Mayor and Head of the Popular Committee, Bayian Tabib. He and his fifteen-year-old son, Thair Bayain Tabib, were arrested on Friday the 30th of July around 2 p.m. as they stepped out of the mosque after the Friday noon prayer. Both were accused of throwing stones at a main road near the settlement – both declared themselves innocent. Regardless of the complete lack of evidence, Israeli soldiers, after having detained the two men for about an hour, put them in a jeep and drove them to a secluded place slightly outside of the village. Here, the commander in charge demanded that Bayain Tabib keep the youngsters of the village completely away from the main road and threatened him with further arrests if he didn’t obey. The soldiers seized the identity cards of the two men unlawfully and finally released them after one hour and a half.
Episodes like this are not exceptional. Thair Tabib has been arrested a number of times, the first when he was thirteen years old, and is always accused of stone-throwing. His father, Bayain Tabib, was in prison for two months in 2002 during the second Intifada. As the head of the Popular Committee, Tabib receives special attention from the Israeli authorities. Israeli soldiers often park outside his home and point their machine guns at anyone coming or going in an attempt to intimidate Tabib, his wife, and his nine children.
The latest threat is to three shops in the village which were partially demolished on August 12th by a bulldozer owned by a private Israeli gas company, Delek. The firm wants to build a new gas station in the area for the roughly 5,000 Israeli settlers from Zufin and the many more who inhabit Alfei Menashe, the biggest illegal settlement nearby, as at present the only one nearby is Palestinian. The land was sold to them by a Palestinian collaborator with Israeli ID but the shopkeepers are resisting the demolition of their shops which would destroy their livelihood. ISM activists will be staying overnight together with the Mayor and owners of the shops in case a demolition bulldozer returns – they have come on the three previous Thursdays and are expected again this Thursday. According to the villagers court has issued a demolition order on the shops.
Meanwhile, despite the great pressure that Izbet Tabib is exposed to from both soldiers, settlers, the wall, eviction and demolition orders, the village has become an important and inspiring site for resistance against the occupation. What is particularly unique is that Izbet Tabib joins an extremely small number of villages that have succeeded in having the wall that used to cut deeply into their farm land physically removed and thus getting most of their stolen farm land back after a verdict that declared the original route of the wall illegal.
Today (23 August 2010) a demonstration was held in the Baqa’a Valley, east of Hebron, against the theft of water from the Palestinian population in the area. About 15 water trucks were parked along Road 60, the road that runs through the valley. The intention was to protest against the fact that the farmers don’t get access to the water reservoirs in Kyriat Arba, the illegal settlement outside Hebron city. The demonstration was also attended by local farmers, standing on the side of the road with the truck drivers. Israeli police and army came to the spot, but did not interfere during the hour-long demonstration.
The water situation in Baqa’a Valley is critical, as the population depends on their farmland to support themselves, and they get a very limited amount of water from the municipality. The settlements in the Hebron district are supported by the Israeli government with the majority of the water resources, originally sourced from Bethlehem, going to settlements. The water is cut off from the Palestinian areas, which receive only a tiny percentage from the Hebron municipality, while most of it is confiscated by the Israeli state and distributed to illegal settlements like Kyriat Arba and Harsina. According to B’Tselem figures from 2008, residents in the Hebron district use on average 56 litres per capita daily – the third lowest amount in the West Bank. In general, Israelis have access to three and a half times more water than Palestinians living in the West Bank.
Baqa’a Valley is the most fertile land in the Hebron district, and the residents are living in constant fear of losing their homes and land, as the area is included in the Israeli state’s plan of dividing the West Bank and expanding and connecting the surrounding settlements. About 35 houses in Baqa’a Valley, in the so-called Area C are now facing eviction orders. In addition the residents frequently face vandalism of crops and water pipes from settlers intent on sabotaging Palestinian residents’ livelihoods. The video below from Tayush shows a recent incident in which settlers attempted to destroy water pipes in the Hebron district.
The water shortage in the Occupied Territories is a major violation of the basic human rights of Palestinians. Israel’s control over and unequal distribution of water resources has been an increasingly harmful policy since 1967 as Palestinian consumption needs have increased with population but not been met due to both neglect of existing infrastructure and failure to construct new water infrastructure, especially in rural areas. There are also numerous restrictions placed on Palestinians right to access water for example by constructing wells. As well as deliberate sabotage by settlers, leakage from pipes due to defective maintenance means that one-third of the amount of the water supplied to the West Bank annually is lost.
Under international law (Article 27 of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 which prohibits an occupying state from discriminating between residents of occupied territory) Israel’s clear discrimination in terms of quantity and regularity of water to supply to settlements as opposed to Palestinian areas is illegal. During the summer Palestinians’ water supplies are often reduced even further in order to meet increased demand from settlements.
Bilin protestors pose as prisoners in front of Israeli soldiers following the release of photos of abuse of Palestinian detainees.
Bil’in
The weekly demonstration in the village of Bil’in this week saw protesters draw attention to the recently published photos of the abuse of Palestinian prisoners by the Israeli army. A handful of the protesters blindfolded and handcuffed themselves to draw attention to the mistreatment of prisoners and marched at the front of the demonstration. Two arrests were made, including one of these protesters, a Norwegian student, who was grabbed while still blindfolded and dragged away.
Israeli soldiers detaining a Norwegian protestor who had blindfolded herself like a Palestinian prisoner
As well as local Palestinian residents, around 30 internationals and about 10 Israelis took part in the demonstration against the Apartheid Wall and the theft of land belonging to the residents of Bil’in. Despite it being the second Friday of Ramadan and a swelteringly hot day, the protesters chanted slogans against the occupation and called for the release of the village’s prisoners, as well as the prosecution of Israeli soldiers found to have been abusing prisoners in their custody. Many demonstrators carried reproductions of a photograph of Israeli soldiers posing by the body of a dead Palestinian man – an image they termed a “souvenir shot” which bears comparison to pictures of Iraq’s Abu Ghraib which shocked the world in 2004.
The protesters marched up to the soldiers and the blindfolded and cuffed ‘prisoners’ sat at their feet (to offer the soldiers an opportunity for photos they could later upload to facebook.) Without warning tear gas started to be fired and – while still blindfolded – a Norwegian citizen was forcefully arrested. She was later released but told to return to meet Israeli authorities on Sunday, when they admitted she could not have been aware of the fact that the area had been declare a ‘closed military zone’ but then accused her of being a member of the International Solidarity Movement and imposed conditions banning her from going to Bil’in for 15 days. An Israeli activist was also arrested but released later the same day.
The route of Israel’s separation wall in Bil’in cuts off villagers from large areas of their land. It was declared illegal in September 2007 by Israel’s own High Court, but despite this – and the International Court of Justice’s 2004 ruling that the wall in its entirety is illegal and should be dismantled – it remains in place. Bil’in have been holding weekly protests since March 2005 and the creativity and perseverance of the nonviolent struggle there has drawn international attention to the Palestinian resistance to occupation as a while.
Ni’lin
On Friday about 25 Palestinians were joined by a small group of internationals for the village of Ni’lin’s weekly protest against the Apartheid Wall. Five international and two Israeli protesters joined the demonstration which started after Friday prayers. The group marched to the wall which cuts off Palestinians from their farmland, annexing it to Israeli settlements like Modi’in Illit.
Perhaps due to the intense heat and it being the second Friday of Ramadan, the demonstration this week was fairly quiet. Despite huge aggression for the Israeli army in the past, they refrained for once from even using teargas or sound bombs against the unarmed protest so the situation remained peaceful. After the demonstration the internationals present were given a tour of the village and its small museum commemorating important events in the history of Ni’lin’s struggle.
An Nabi Saleh
Around 50 people took part in this Friday’s demonstration against the illegally built Halamish settlement encroaching on land belonging to the village of An Nabi Saleh, this Friday, and this number included approximately 15 Israeli and international human rights activists.
As usual the protest began after noon prayer, and continued until around four o’clock, despite the fact that the majority of the participants are currently fasting for Ramadan. The march down to the entrance of the village was once again met with a blockade, and after several attempts to gain access to the village’s main road, the protesters retreated back up the street to the centre of the village.
Soldiers later began throwing sound bombs and shooting tear gas projectiles directly at Palestinian children. The children stones at the soldiers’ armored jeeps. One of the children was hit in the leg by a ricocheting tear gas canister, but was not seriously injured.
Subsequent attempts to reason with the soldiers resulted in two international activists being detained in Halamish military base for several hours. Other attempted arrests were scuppered by fellow activists. A lot of teargas was fired at the houses nearby and a lot of people including children suffered from teargas inhalation, but the protesters declared the lack of serious injuries and spirited protest a success.
Al Ma’sara
Palestinians from Al Ma’sara and nine surrounding villages south of Bethlehem were joined on Friday by internationals and Israelis in solidarity with their cause. The weekly demonstration against the Apartheid Wall and illegal settlements reacted to the pictures of Palestinian prisoners humiliated by Israeli soldiers in ‘souvenir photos’ posted on Facebook – and so several protesters wore handcuffs and blindfolds while others carried enlarged photographs of the abuse.
Al Ma'sara protestors hold copies of photos showing captured, injured or killed Palestinians - posted on facebook by Israeli soldiers
Despite some suggestions that they are a one-off, the demonstrates hoped to make the point that in fact these images and such incidents are common and form part of the systematic abuse that goes hand in hand with Israel’s ongoing illegal occupation of Palestine. In chants and speeches, protesters called for an end to the continuing violations of the Geneva Accords and international law.
The protesters proceeded to the road that Israel illegally constructed on Palestinian land to connect the Jewish-only settlements of Gush Etzion but they were intercepted by the Israeli army. Sound bombs were thrown at the unarmed and nonviolent protesters who were denied the right to access their land once again. However, organizers stated that despite the soldiers’ violence they would continue their peaceful fight for freedom and justice which is their right.
Hebron
At 4:00 PM on Friday August 21, people began gathering in the Old City centre of Hebron. The resistance organized a peaceful march through the Old City markets. The purpose of the march was to thank the shopkeepers for their support of the demonstrations that take place on a weekly basis, calling for an end to the military occupation and settler violence – and to reiterate this call.
During the last few weeks, soldiers have been attacking peaceful protesters. Many Palestinians, internationals and Israelis have been assaulted and arrested by the Israeli army. Some of the Palestinians were also beaten in prison.
The soldiers have also threatened leaders of the movement with lengthy prison terms, up to 10 years. In addition to this, they have sent agents to threaten and intimidate shopkeepers. Three shops were forcefully closed down last week.
A young boy watches Israeli soldiers patrolling in occupied Hebron
In light of all of this repression, the leaders have decided to temporarily suspend the protests. The crowd met and marched through the Old City. Shopkeepers were given certificates thanking them for supporting the struggle.
There were soldiers watching the procession from the roofs, and six of them followed the people from behind. They did not try to interfere and in the end went back to their base. The group Youth Against Settlements will be organizing more events in the future to continue the struggle for justice in Hebron.
Iraq Burin
Yesterday in the small village of Iraq Burin, nonviolent demonstrators were attacked by the Israeli army and Border Police, who fired tear gas and sound bombs at the protestors. Since a flying checkpoint is regularly used to close the road into the village along the main road from Nablus, preventing access to internationals and media, and the young men of the village suspected of taking part in the demonstrations, a long hike across a valley leads up to the hill-top village. Demonstrations happen every Saturday, but tensions have been high since the murder of two young boys by an Israeli military sniper took place inside the village in March this year.
A large group of Palestinians gathered on the outskirts of the village and three internationals who had skirted the checkpoint were also present. The demonstration began with around thirty or more Palestinians attempting to scale the steep hill opposite the village, where Israeli soldiers were already in position. The soldiers responded to the demonstration by – illegally – firing teargas canisters directly at Palestinians and internationals, firing downhill at the upper body. At least two Palestinians received injuries from the canisters on the neck and shoulders, and one international was hit in the back although none were seriously hurt because each ricocheted off a rock first. Tear gas and sound bombs were also shot in the direction of the village and those not even taking part in the demonstration but watching from the opposite hill. The demonstration continued for approximately an hour, when Israeli Border police arrived and the demonstrators were forced to retreat. Thankfully, no live fire has been used since the murders but the isolation of the protest by the military creates a dangerous situation, as it is difficult for media and international volunteers to be present, increasing the chances that the Israeli army will use weapons with reckless disregard for human life.
