Settler violence rages in Nablus area

by Jonas Weber

29 February 2012 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank

Yesterday, violence erupted close to Joseph’s Tomb when settlers gathered near the site. Youths from Balata refuge camp came out to chase the settlers off but where kept at a distance by the soldiers that accompanied the illegal settlers as usual. This is the second time this month that violence occurred due to settlers visiting Joseph’s Tomb.

In the nearby village of Burin, dozens of settlers from the illegal settlement Yitzhar attacked the house of Umm Ayman Sufan by throwing rocks and bottles. The olive trees surrounding Sufan’s home on the southern edge of the village were also cut down.

Meanwhile, another attack on Burin from the illegal settlement of Bracha was reported by the Palestinian Authorities.

“Recently we have noticed that young settlers are hanging out with soldiers at the checkpoints, and we know that they receive training in handling fire arms from the age of 15 under the cloak of self defense,” says Ghassan Daghlas. “Why do they need to learn about fire arms for self defense when they have an entire occupational army protecting them?”

Yitzhar is considered to be home to some of the most militant Zionist settlers of the West Bank, and Palestinians from nearby villages claim that settlers from Yitzhar coordinate attacks against Palestinian villagers with other settlements. The illegal settlement Yeshiva has been suspected by the Israeli intelligence service Shin Bet to be teaching racist and violent ideologies to their students.

The Yeshiva leaders Rabbi Yitzhak Ginzburg and Rabbi Yitzhak Shapira have many times been at the center of controversies surrounding their statements about non Jewish people. Shapiras organization Od Yosef Hai, which includes various grades of educational institutions and publishing, up until recently received extensive funding from the Israeli Education Ministry. In November 2011 both Ginzburg’s and Shapira’s institutions were closed down by the Education Ministry due to information about the participation of students and teachers in attacks on Palestinians and Israeli military forces.

Since these institutions were closed the settler violence from Yitzhar has increased according to Ghassan Daghlas. After all, Yitzhar was the settlement to first take the so called “price tag” tactic into practice. The price tag tactic means to target Palestinian civilians or property in order to get revenge for actions from the Israeli military or government to curb settlement activity, perceived as unjust by the illegal settlers.

Generally the settler attacks increase during the summer when the weather is warmer according to Ghassan Douglas. They also change character with the weather

“In the summer everything is dry and they tend to burn crops and trees, when it’s colder and damper they move on to burn mosques and cars,” he says.

Jonas Weber is a volunteer with International Solidarity Movement (name has been changed).

Israel raids Ramallah TV stations

29 February 2012 | Ma’an News

Israeli forces raided two Palestinian television networks early Wednesday in Ramallah and briefly detained four employees, journalists said.Soldiers confiscated computers used by editors and reporters in Watan TV’s newsroom and general offices as well as administrative and financial files, the network said.

Troops also raided Al-Quds Educational TV in Al-Bireh and confiscated its broadcasting equipment, the head of its TV department Haroun Abu Irreh told Ma’an.

“This attack is nothing but piracy under a policy of systematic attack targeting Palestinian media organizations and journalists,” Watan TV said in a statement.

The network “deplores this aggressive behavior against an efficient and effective media organization,” and said it will restore the stolen equipment and transmitters and to try to resume broadcasts.

An Israeli army spokeswoman said soldiers were accompanying an operation by the country’s communications ministry, which had determined that the networks were broadcasting illegally.

They had been asked to cease their broadcasting “which significantly interrupts other legal broadcasting stations,” an army spokeswoman told Ma’an. “During the operation and in accordance with law, the communications ministry confiscated several transmitters.”

“Illegal broadcasting interfered with aircraft communication, which is very, very dangerous.”

Abu Irreh of Al-Quds Educational TV called the events of Wednesday morning “harassment to media and education stations and a way to shut the mouths of media and reporters.”

Palestinian lawmaker Mustafa Barghouti condemned the raids in a statement.

“This act is not only a violation of human rights and humanitarian law,” he said, “but also a breach of the agreements that forbid the Israeli military forces from entering or carrying out operations” in Area A.

“We will campaign worldwide to repel the Israeli aggression,” he said.

Watan TV identified the four employees who were detained as head of production Abdul Rahman Thaher, correspondent Hamza Salaymeh, graphics expert Ibrahim Milhim and broadcaster Ahmad Zaki.

They were released after several hours, the network said.

We Are With Hana Shalabi and Al Aqsa: Demonstration in the No Go Zone in Beit Hanoun

by Nathan Stuckey

29 February 2012 | International Solidarity Movement, Gaza

Israeli riot police have entered the Al Aqsa Mosque Compound, Palestinians have struggling to protect it for days.  After 66 days Khader Adnan has ended his hunger strike, hopefully, soon, he will be home with his family.  Even before his hunger strike ended the newest one had begun.  Hana Shalabi, a young woman from the West Bank, was put into “administrative detention” on February 16, 2012.  Like Khader Adnan she has been charged with no crime.  Like Khader Adnan she finds dignity more important than food.  Hana Shalabi was only recently released from Israeli prisons, freed in the latest prisoner exchange between Israel and Palestine.  She had spent over two years in prison when she was released, she had not been charged with a crime that time either.  These are the things that inspired this week’s demonstration against the no go zone and the occupation in Beit Hanoun.

As we gathered on the road beside the half destroyed Beit Hanoun Agricultural College the wind blew fiercely.  The flags did not wave in the breeze, they were held stretched out in full.  Those that did not have flags had posters of Al Aqsa.  Music played over the megaphone.  We marched quietly and quickly down the road to the no go zone.  As we approached the buffer zone the chanting began, dozens of young men pledging to defend Al Aqsa and demanding the end of occupation.  We marched to the ditch that bisects the no go zone, we stopped.  Sabur Zaaneen from the Local Initiative of Beit Hanoun said a few words, “Al Aqsa is at the center of our nation, it is at the center of our life, we will not abandon it.”  Sabur announced that we would symbolically join Hana’s hunger strike, for two hours we would remain in the no go zone and neither eat nor drink.

Soon, the Israeli shooting began.  The first bullet I thought was perhaps the crack of a flag in the wind; there was no mistaking the bullets after that.  We retreated a bit, then the young men stopped and rallied.  The flag we had been standing by now had a hole in it.  We walked back toward the wall; soldiers appeared on top of the concrete tower from which they had so recently shot at us.  The soldiers started to fire tear gas at us.  The fierce wind carried it away too quickly for it to be really effective.  They started to shoot at us again.  The bullets whistled over our heads.  We were unarmed demonstrators, who had not so much as thrown a ball of cotton, who had no guns, being shot at by soldiers in a concrete tower.  This is the only way the occupation knows how to speak, with bullets, with tear gas.  We started to walk back toward Beit Hanoun, bullets whistling over our heads.  We stopped at the edge of the no go zone.  Some of us set down to continue our symbolic hunger strike.  The Israeli bullets began again.  They continued to shoot as we walked back to Beit Hanoun.  The entire time the Israeli soldiers shot at us Hana Shalabi refused to eat and drink, her refusal is louder than their bullets.  We will win.

Deadline extended: Submit your photos for the liberation of Shuhada street

20 February 2012 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank

Beginning this week local organizers in Al Khalil (Hebron) and supporters have organized a series of events to commemorate the Baruch Goldstein Massacre and demand the re-opening of Shuhada Street, once the commercial heart of Al Khalil, now off limits to locals, Palestinians in general, and even international supporters following the massacre that claimed 29 Palestinian lives.

While one street may seem insignificant or small, the segregation, economic strangulation, violence, and oppression that Shuhada Street suffers is a microcosm of Zionist policy. As extremist settlers continue to harass and violently attack Palestinians and internationals, and the Golani Brigade continues to show no accountability or concern for international law, it is all the more essential that this street be the symbolic avenue of freedom for Palestinians.

An illegal Zionist settlement pollutes the very heart of a historic piece of Al Khalil now overtaken with settler violence, racial epithets, and sadly, pure hatred for Palestinians and their supporters.

The residents of Al Khalil, Palestinian activists, and International Solidarity Movement  call on the international community to display their support in a project that will showcase international solidarity for the opening of Shuhada Street.

As such we ask that the international community submits a photo of solidarity to International Solidarity Movement. This photo will be of a major street or landmark of your hometown with a display or sign of solidarity for Shuhada Street. Diversity in support for human rights can humanize the victims of Zionist oppression in Al Khalil and elsewhere.

Get creative with your slogans and locations! Please note that multiple photos from the same location will not all be published, so local organizing in deciding a location in your community is suggested, or the ISM media team will select 1 photo from each location.

In order to participate, please submit a photo to palreportskhalil@gmail.com and keep in mind the following guidelines:

  1. In the subject line of your email please be sure to write “Open Shuhada Street Photo Campaign”
  2. Photos should not be a maximum of 1 MB
  3. A poster, sign, clothing or any other visual statement supporting the opening of Shuhada Street should be visible in the photo along with the landmark or major street
  4. It is not necessary for individuals to be a part of the picture, as your privacy is honored, however if individuals can please indicate their names (if they wish to be identified)
  5. Please include a location of the photo (example: Hollywood sign, Hollywood, California) in the email
  6. Include the date when the photograph was taken in the email
  7. If the visual is written in a language other than English, please write the statement in the body of the email in order to be translated.
  8. Photos are original and not edited or borrowed from another entity
  9. Please submit photos no later than April 2nd

ISM Palestine looks forward to receiving your photographs. Stay tuned for a publication on April 4th on palsolidarity.org.


Clashes and arrests in the town of Tur

by Asmaa Thaher

28 February 2012 | Jerusalem Center for Media

Broke out this evening clashes in the town of Tur East Jerusalem and the occupation forces arrested two young men from the region.

Our correspondent said that the clashes broke out near Al-Maqased hospital and Tur club down to the Sawwanah neighborhood crossroads.

He said that the occupation authorities used large amounts of tear gas, rubber and sound bullets, and youths response with throwing stones and iron bars at soldiers.

Witnesses said that soldiers arrested two young men at least in the confrontations that take place in the town for the fourth day in the neighborhood protesting to storm Al Aqsa Mosque on Friday.