YNet: “Hebron settlers filmed throwing rocks at Palestinians”

VIDEO Just two months after shocking footage of settler cursing Palestinian in Hebron revealed, yet another video shows settler children throwing rocks at Palestinian homes. Muhammad Abu Aisha: ‘I yelled to the soldiers and policemen standing 70 feet away but they pretended they couldn’t see’

by Ali Waked, March 8th

VIDEO – “The settlers continue to curse us and throw rocks at us, including the cursing settler Ifat Elkobi. Only this time she’s being smarter about it. She brings friends who live outside this area so we can’t recognize them and then can’t complain about them,” 70-year-old Muhammad Abu-Aisha said on Wednesday night of the harassment and humiliation he suffers at the hands of his settler neighbors.

According to Abu-Aisha after the video of Elkobi was released the harassment lessened for several days, but since then it has returned to its original level.

Abu Aisha says that on Wednesday a neighbor beat his grandson: “He started hitting Muhammad, my grandson, and I stood and shouted to the soldiers and policemen, who were standing 70 feet away to intervene.

“But they pretended they couldn’t see. I called the police, I told them we’d been beaten and that the incident was filmed. They said: bring in the video and come to file a complaint, but we chose to give the movie to B’Tselem.”

Partial footage of settler violence in Hebron
(Video: Faidaa Abu-Aisha, courtesy: B’Tselem)

The B’Tselem human rights organization said it transferred the video, which documents settler violence in full sight of security forces, to the Hebron police. The video reportedly shows girls from Hebron pelting eggs at Palestinians in the presence of an IDF soldier and Border Police officer who make no move to stop them.

Following the distribution of the first video there was much discussion over the authorities soldiers have over settlers in such cases however the Association for Civil Rights in Israel proved that soldiers are compelled by law to act against the perpetrators.

Disengagement deteriorated situation

Abu-Aisha said that he may well be the only Palestinian who is displeased with the Israeli disengagement from Gaza.

“This disengagement only brought us more trouble. There are settlers from Gaza who moved here and quickly joined the violence against us, so how can I be pleased with the disengagement? It brought us more stones, more curses, more eggs and like always, the soldiers and policemen don’t do anything. Just watch and don’t do anything. One thing’s for sure is that they see everything.”

Even the apologies of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defense Minister Amir Peretz after the incident in January didn’t help and nothing seems to have changed for Palestinians in the city.

“How can the situation change if the settlers assaulted the deputy defense minister who came here after the last incident and no one bothered to bring them to justice?” asked Abu-Aisha.

Over the course of the Purim holiday the Palestinians say they noted an increase in the harassment, curses, spitting and pelting of eggs and stones.

“In the past I lived with Jews in Hebron. Even today I have friends in Tel Aviv who used to live here in those years. When the settlers came here and stated harassing us, my friends intervened and arranged for me to meet with Dr. Yosef Burg, who was minister of the interior. He spoke with the settlers and they calmed down a bit. But after that they went back to the same violence which has been used against us since then and up until today, only today we don’t have Dr. Burg to turn to.”

Abu-Aisha stressed that the problem is not with all the Jews: “We can and have lived well with Jews. The problem is with this group that didn’t come here to live but came here to drive us out. And it just goes to show that none of the people here work. Just abuse us – that’s what they do, that’s their job.”

Because of his age Abu-Aisha said he is spared any physical violence, but not curses. “They curse me regularly but I know how to treat them. Every time they curse I smile and they grow more annoyed. At least this way I manage to upset them and get them back for what they do to us.”

Military sources said in response that in the video provided by Abu-Aisha the soldiers are clearly seen moving the children away. Representatives for the Jewish settlement in Hebron declined comment.

Umm Salamuna anti-Wall demo and tree planting in Hebron this Friday

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

This Friday the villagers of Umm Salamuna and neighbouring villages in the South Bethlehem region will protest against the bulldozers which are currently razing their land for the Apartheid Wall. The villagers will hold midday prayers on their land before marching to confront the bulldozers.

Last Friday villagers held a rally and blocked a settler road in protest at the Wall which will annex 700 dunums to the Israeli settlement of Efrat and destroy 270 dunums. Although the villagers are challenging the route of the Wall in the Israeli Supreme Court, a Court order freezing work was lifted two weeks ago and the bulldozers have been razing the village’s agricultural land daily ever since.

In Hebron’s Tel Rumeida district olive trees will be planted to replace trees belonging to local Palestinian families that have been burned or destroyed in recent years by Hebron settlers. Two hundred will be planted in Tel Rumeida this Friday including one for CPT member (Christian Peacemaker Teams) Tom Fox who was kidnapped and murdered in Iraq on March 9th 2006. Tom volunteered with CPT in Hebron in 2005. The meeting place will be Shuhada Street at 9am and the planting will continue until around 1pm.

Between 2003 and 2006, 2,400 olive trees owned by Palestinians have been reported to have been uprooted or cut down by settlers, according to Israeli Attorney General Menachem Mazuz.

Dos meses en palestina como ISM

Primeramente son galega aunke escribiendo en mi lengua llegaria a mucho menos personal asi k por favor k no se ofenda nadie y a pesar de luchar en ontra de la ocupacion israelita en palestina y su derecho a tener un estado estoy mas pro la desaparicion de las fronteras k la creacion de nuevas, bien ya me he presentado asi k al ajo de la cuestion. Espero se disculpe la ortografia, puntuacion, gramatica y demas no soy lo major del mundo escribiendo pero es simplente una experincia k igual a alguien interesa .

La mayor parte de mi tiempo la he pasado en Hebron en el barrio Tel Rumeida donde hay 4 pekenhos asentamientos de judios con unos 400 habitantes y por esa razon parte de la ciudad vieja y este barrio en concreto estan bajo las leyes israelitas eso implica k los palestinos k viven en el barrio k por cierto llevan ahi generaciones y generaciones no tienen derecho a conducir por k solo Israelis coches pueden circular alli dentro es decir si alguien se enferma hay k cargarlo fuera a mano por k hacen falta dos dias de antelacion para pedir el acceso de una ambulancia,asi k ya os podeis inmaginar como es la vida alli cargando continuamente los alimentos el gas … y por aclarar un poko la cuestion la calle principal es una cuesta k nada envidia a la accession al parc guell o a rua das trompas (compostela). Ademas del impedimento del vehiculo los palestinos son sometidos a un continuo chekeo algunos tienen k pasar 5 puestos de chekeo para llegar a sus casas y en estos puestos de control los soldados israelitas pueden pedirles la documentacion, controlar todas sus pertenencias , hacerles levanter la camisas y girarse ,claro esta esto es solo una mera muestra de poder por k hay al menos un par de entradas al barrio sin pasar ninguno de los controles es decir si alguien con una bomba o algo parecido kiere entrar puede encontrar la manera pero el estudiante k viene del colegio tiene k pasar por un detector de metales y abrir su mochila o hacer todo lo k pidan los soldados, es solo un ejemplo, inmaginais vivir en un lugar asi…

Por si no fuera bastante kon el acoso de los soldados, resulta k estos no estan tan mal comparados con sus vecinos los judios k habitan en los asentamientos k simplemente los odian por ser arabes y vivir alli se dedican a escribir “gasear a los arabes” y a dibujar estrellas de david en las tiendas k konsiguieron cerrar despues de seis anhos impidiendo el acceso de productos y cerrando el area por tokes de keda ,pero ademas usan la violencia fisica es decir se dedican a tirar piedras a los palestinos , entrar en sus jardines, ocupar sus casas… Incluso los soldados y los policies k los protegen piensan k estan lokos pero resulta k por esa razon alli son ley y orden si no fuera por el trabajo de diversas organizaciones internacionales k hacen k minimamente se cumpla la ley k ya es bastante infima para los palestinos.

Durante mi estancia en Palestina en Jerusalem los israelitas escavaron cerca de la mezquita Al-aqsa, el tercer sagrado monumento del islam este incidente produjo los ninhos en Hebron estaban nerviosos y enfadados y lanzaron piedras contra el puesto de control claro k ninguna llego a la parte israelita bueno igual una o dos pero esto fue la escusa para salir a la parte palestina alrededor de 20 soldados y disparar balas de goma y gas lacrimogeno a el Mercado central de la zona k cerro durante 4 dias por k los soldados salieron cada dia a repetir la operacion el ultimo dia incluso un ninho menor de 16 fue al hospital por una bala en la pierna esta vez no era de goma….Podria contra una mil anecdotas de tel rumeida pero kreo k para hacerse una idea basta.

Manifestaciones contras el muro en un pueblo cerca de ramallah llamado bi’lin llevan dos anhos hacienda una manifestacion seminal (cada viernes) por k la construccion del muro les esta exprodiando el 60% de sus tierras y es ilegal incliuso para Israel k tiene leyes distintas para segun donde y quien ,las manifestaciones suelen ser relativamente trankilas hasta k al final los ninhos del pueblo comienzan a tirar piedras ,mas k nada es un simbolo de resistencia por k obviamente los soldados llevan cascos k los protegen y demas pero con esta escusa pueden usar todo su tactica y material belico debido a la presencia de israelitas e internacionales k apoyan su lucha ya no usan balas de verdad sino solo balas de goma , gas lacrimogeno y canhones de agua a presion claro k son kapaces de usar este material directamente contra los participantes es decir a una distancia k puede llegar realmente a causar estragos.

Invasion en Nablus ,el ejercito israelita invadio la ciudad y ocupo la television local pidiendo la aparicion de 8 personas que buscaban despues de hecho esto sitiaron la ciudad vieja y ordenaron un toke de keda sin limite de tiempo ,en este tipo de situaciones lo unico k se puede hacer es acompanhar a los del servicio medico y asegurarse k se les permite hacer el trabajo asi como asegurarse k tienen alimentos y las medicinas necesarias, en una de las visitas con el medico mientras tomabamos un te fuera en la terraza de la casa y nos contaban como acababan de inspeccionar la casa con un perro y se habian asustado mucho por k en la casa habia unos 8 ninhos menores de diez anhos, bien mientras nos contaban la experiencia un grupo de soldados subia por el tejado vecino y se acercaron a la casa iba un perro con ellos y nos mandarin entrar a todos en una habitacion mientras inspeccionaban la casa por segunda vez ,es deplorable k unos ninhos menores de diez anhas tengan k ever soldados apuntandoles con armas y un perro con bozal y muy nervioso lo unico k podia hacer era intentar entretener a la chikilla de dos anhos sentada en mis rodillas para k no hiciera mucho caso a lo k estaba sucediendo.

Otro espectaculo lamentable k pude observer fue cuando ibamos caminando siempre con voluntarios de primeros auxilios y a una distancia de 150m habia un grupo de soldados ibamos en la direccion contraria asi k no les hicimos caso hasta k dispararon algo para llamar nuestra atencion cuando nos acercamos a donde estaban, nos mandarin parar a un os 10m y uno por uno a los tres voluntarios medicos les hicieron abrir las chaketas, desabrochar el pantalon y girarse hacia los k estabamos esperando los otros dos voluntarios y las dos internacionales k los acompanhabamos, no hace falta recordar k Palestina es bastante tradicional y por supoesto resulto bastante embarazoso para los palestinos k unas estrangeras les vieran en gallumbos a mi me da lo mismo pero era totalmente innecesario y simplemente fue una forma mas de humillarlos publicamente.

Podria contra mas historias pero kreo k ya os haceis una idea salud y libertad para tod@s

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First of all I want to say that I am Galician, but of course if I write in my own language, less people would understand me, so, please don’t be angry with me, because despite fighting against the Israeli occupation in Palestine and the Palestinian right to have a State, I am more in favor of the disappearance of borders than the creation of new ones. So, once I’ve introduced myself, please excuse me for the mistakes I may make in orthography, grammar, etc., I’m not at all a writer, but I think that perhaps somebody might be interested in my experience.

I spent most of my time in Tel Rumeida where there are four small Jewish settlements where around 400 settlers live and therefore, part of the old city and this neighbourhood in particular are under Israeli laws. This means for example, that Palestinian residents, who have lived there for generations, cannot drive there, because only Israelis can drive a car in Tel Rumeida. So, if somebody gets ill, he or she has to be carried out of the neighbourhood on shoulders, as ambulances have to be requested two days in advance. So imagine how life is there, swinging everything over shoulders, food, gas etc, the main street is completely steep, like going up to Park Güell in Barcelona or up by Rua Das Trompas in Compostela.

Besides having this problem, Palestinians are subject to continuous checking. Some of them have to pass 5 checkpoints to arrive home and at those checkpoints, the Israeli soldiers can ask them for their documents, check everything they are carrying, make them lift up their t-shirts, and turn round. This is only to show their power, because there are at least two ways in and out of the area without having to pass through the checkpoints, that is to say that if a terrorist decided to enter, he could easily find a way to do so. But the schoolchildren have to pass through a metal detector and open their bags and do whatever the soldiers ask them to do. So, imagine what it is like living in a place like this.

And if soldiers weren’t enough of a problem, there are the problems caused by the Jewish settlers who hate Palestinians only because they are Arabs and live there and they write on the doors of their homes “gas the Arabs” and draw Stars of David on the shop doors, which by the way, the Palestinians have been forced to shut, after six years of preventing the access of products and closing the area with curfews, and using also physical violence, by throwing stones at Palestinians, trespassing in their orchards, occupying their houses. Even the soldiers and the police who should protect the settlers believe that they are crazy, but this is the reason why they are there imposing “law and order”, and only the work of several international organizations trying to protect the limited rights of Palestinians prevents an even more intolerable situation.

During my stay in Palestine, in Jerusalem, the Israelis were excavating near the Al-Aqsa mosque, the third most holy site in Islam. That is one of the reasons why children in Hebron were angry and one day threw stones at the checkpoint, and although only one or two stones reached it, this was enough of an excuse for 20 soldiers to cross to the Palestinian-controlled side and shoot rubber bullets and tear gas at the central market, which had to be shut for 4 days. Soldiers went in every day to do this, and on the last day a child below 16 years had to be taken to the hospital because he was shot with live ammunition in his leg… I could tell so many stories about Tel Rumeida, but I think that this is enough to have an idea of what is happening there daily.

At a small village called Bil’in, which is near Ramallah, they have been holding weekly demonstration on Fridays for two years ago, against the construction of the Wall that is stealing 60% of their land. This is illegal even according to Israeli laws. Those demonstrations are peaceful ones, but if at any moment children of the village throw any stones as a symbol of their resistance and nothing can happen because of course the soldiers are wearing helmets and are very well protected, they use this as an excuse to employ their military tactics and weapons. Thanks to the presence of Israeli activists against the wall and internationals supporting Palestinians, they do not usually shoot live ammunition, but only rubber bullets, tear gas and water cannons directly at people and at close distance, which may be very dangerous.

Invasion in Nablus. The Israeli army invaded the city and occupied the local television, asking for 8 persons they said were ‘wanted’. After this, they besieged the old town and imposed a curfew for an unknown time. In such situations, the only things that internationals can do is accompany medical teams and ensure that they can do their work, as they have the necessary food and medicines. In one of our visits to a doctor, while we were having tea outside on the terrace he was explaining to us that the IOF had just been searching the house with a dog scaring the 8 children under 10-years old, and while they were explaining their experience, a group of soldiers climbed onto the nearest roof and came towards the house with a dog again. Then, they ordered all of us into on room while they searched the house for a second time. It is awful that children under ten have to see and experience soldiers aiming at them with weapons and a very agitated dog wearing a muzzle, the only thing I could do was to try and entertain a little girl of 2 years sitting on my knees, so that she did not pay so much attention to what was happening beside her.

I witnessed more abuse when we were walking with first aid volunteers and there was a group of soldiers about 150 meters away walking in the opposite direction. The soldiers shot a sound bomb to attract our attention and then called us over. They told us all to stop 10 meters away from them. They then called the Palestinian medical volunteers over one by one and made them pull down their trousers and turn round to face the two internationals that accompanied them. I don’t need to remind you that in Palestine it is particularly embarrassing for Palestinians to have foreign women see them in public in their underwear. This was completely unnecessary and simply a way to humiliate them further in public.

TIPH: “International observer assaulted in Hebron”

by TIPH, March 7th

A Swedish member of the civilian observer mission TIPH (Temporary International Presence in Hebron) was rushed to hospital after being hit by a big stone in his head outside a Jewish settlement in central Hebron Monday afternoon.

TIPH condemns this act of aggression against one of its members and urges the Israeli authorities to take action.

Before the incident on Monday the TIPH patrol car was driving on Al-Shuhada street outside Beit Hadassah settlement when the patrol observed a group of four Israeli youth. One of them threw a large stone at the front window of the car. The patrol stopped at the checkpoint just outside the settlement. The soldier on duty had not seen the incident.

While speaking to the soldier the Swedish observer was hit on the side of his face with a big stone. Bleeding heavily he was first taken to Al-Ahli Hospital in Hebron. Later he was rushed to Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem for treatment. He was released from hospital early Tuesday morning after examinations showed no internal bleeding and no fractures to the skull.

– This incident is only the last in a number of serious assaults on TIPH observers in this area, Karl-Henrik Sjursen Head of Mission for TIPH says. If this is allowed to continue it is only a matter of time before the perpetrators will succeed in inflicting permanent bodily injury on one of their victims, or in the worst case, the loss of life.

– TIPH expects the Israeli authorities to take all necessary steps to put an end to these attacks.

TIPH is a civilian observer mission in the West Bank city of Hebron, consisting of personnel sent from the Foreign Ministries of Norway, Italy, Sweden, Denmark, Switzerland and Turkey.

TIPH was called for during the Oslo peace talks by the Israeli government and the Palestinian authority to assist them in their efforts to restore normalcy to the city of Hebron. TIPH reports on breaches of regional agreements on Hebron and human rights law.

Israel harms Palestinian workers, says B’Tselem report

Human rights organization presents comprehensive report on how Israel harms Palestinians’ economy, livelihood. Gives testimonies of abuse at checkpoints, claims complaints are ignored

by Ali Waked, March 6th

prefers to ignore the abuse and humiliation Palestinian workers undergo in their encounters with Israeli security forces on a daily basis, stated a B’Tselem report released Tuesday.

The report, titled: “Beyond Legal Boundaries,” composed by the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories claimed that Israel harms the dignities, bodies, and property of illegal workers.

Offering detailed testimonies of Palestinians who claim to have been mistreated by soldiers and police officers, the report stated that only about 1.5 percent of the complaints filed led to the soldiers being tried in criminal court.

According to B’Tselem, each year Israel places a closure on the Palestinian territories for long periods of times, preventing workers to enter its territory, and in 2005, entrance was denied for a total of 132 days of the year.

In 2000, 150,000 Palestinians were issued permits to work in Israel; however, the report presented data showing that there has been a continuous drop in this number, to about half in 2006.

It was also stated that only a few hundred workers from the Gaza Strip were allowed entrance to Israel.

On the economic aspect, B’Tselem reported that Israel was deliberately implementing an under-development policy in the territories in the years preceding the Oslo agreement, causing the Palestinian market to become dependant on Israel.

Furthermore, Israel has been preventing investments in the Palestinian market, said the report.

The scope of conditions and agonies a Palestinian must go through in order to file an application for a permit was also presented in the report: “The applicant must be married and in his 30s or older, must be a father, and the Israeli employer must also file an application to the IDF authorities in order for the application to be considered.”

“As a result of severe economic distress, the lack of economic development, the closure policies and permits granted from a tightly closed hand, unemployment in the Territories has risen from 10 percent before the intifada to about 25 percent today. In certain age groups, for example 20-24, the number reaches 39 percent,” said the report.

In the 2006 summary, B’Tselem expects unemployment in the Palestinian Authority to reach over 40 percent, accompanied by a 67 percent poverty level.

“In such a situation the dependence of Palestinians on sources of income in Israel will only grow. Israel is greatly responsible for the Palestinian poverty and economic distress.”

‘Let Hamas find you a job’

Another subject widely covered in the report is the abuse of Palestinians by soldiers. According to the report, “The Israeli authorities contribute to the ongoing acts of abuse of Palestinians by not treating them suitably.”

The report said that 64.5 percent of the complaints filed by Palestinians were not even investigated.

Thirty-one percent of the complaints were investigated and closed for various reasons and a mere 3 percent of the soldiers or officers complained against by Palestinians stood disciplinary trial.

According to the report, there has been a general disregard to the execution of verdicts against abusive soldiers and officers, and many crimes go unpunished.

The report presented the testimonies of dozens on Palestinian victims of different types of abuse, including being delayed at checkpoints for many hours and incidents of difficult violence on the part of Israeli soldiers and police officers.

“The officers mock us, beat us, do what they please with us,” said Abdullah Jafer, a resident of Bethlehem in his testimony.

Samer Auni of Hebron told the story of two officers who arrested him: “One of them held me while the other one started to scratch me in the face and neck. One of them took my ID, burned it and said that I voted for Hamas. I told him: ‘I didn’t vote for Hamas,’ and then he asked: ‘So why did Hamas win? Go let Hamas find you a job.'”

B’Tselem’s report also gave testimonies of Palestinians who were forced to collaborate with the defense establishment in exchange for work permits.

“Illegal forceful means are utilized in order to obtain information and recruit collaborators,” claimed the report.

The report stated that since Israel is in control of the West Bank, it is responsible for the welfare of the residents, and for encouraging the creation of workplaces in the West Bank.

However, as long as Palestinians are dependant on Israel for their livelihood, and the West Bank holds no alternative sources of income, Israel should ease the closure policy and allow many more Palestinians to enter its territory, following suitable security checks.

Response: IDF must defend Israelis

The IDF spokesman responded to B’Tselem’s report saying, “The terror organizations’ wish to infiltrate Israel’s home front and harm its citizens constitutes a constant, ongoing risk to the State’s residents. The IDF is obligated to do all it can to defend the residents of the State of Israel.

In the past five years thousands of terror acts were committed against Israel, during which over one thousand Israeli citizens were killed and thousands of others were injured. In any situation where there is a threat of terrorist infiltration into the countries boundaries, the defense forces act according to the conditions in the field, when conditions allow, they thwart the incident, be it an attack or an infiltration attempt, by arresting the suspect, without opening fire.”

Regarding B’Tselem’s claims that Palestinian complaints go untreated, the IDF spokesman said, “Complaints of the harm of Palestinians and the behavior of soldiers are looked into and examined seriously. In compliance with the Military Prosecutor’s office’s policies on complaints of violence, abuse, looting or any other offences regarding wrong and premeditated conduct of soldiers, the Criminal Investigation Division is given an order to open investigation. The IDF further reported that a special effort was being made to execute the verdicts of anyone who committed offences harming illegal residents and when enough evidence is collected, serious indictments are filed.”

Shlomo Dror, the spokesman for the Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories responded to claims regarding the issuing of entry permits to Israel saying, “The defense establishment has allocated a quota for 45,700 workers. So far, of this quota, some 40,100 permits have been issued. The gap comes from a lacking demand on the part of Israeli employers for Palestinian workers. In May 2006 the number of permitted workers was 27,000, and since then, it has been growing steadily.

The Activities Coordinators in the Territories are working to encourage the employment of Palestinians by contractors’ organizations and agricultural organizations and with the help of the National Employment Service. The process of obtaining a permit to work in Israel is simple and effective and the workers’ entrance to Israel is done quickly and efficiently through orderly crossings.

“Nonetheless, the demand is still lower than the quota, for example: The agricultural branch has been approved 7,500 workers, when in reality only some 4,000 applications for workers in this field have been received. Employing workers without a permit in Israel is a security risk, still there are employers who prefer to hire workers for lower wages without having to pay national insurance and income tax, and without having to worry about the workers’ welfare, we view these very severely.”