17 January 2012 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank
On January 4th, an Israeli military commander served 8 demolition orders in the town of Khalit Al-Dar, just south of the city of Al-Khalil, also known as Hebron.
Suleiman Abu Snina, from Khalit Al-Dar, displays the demolition order he received.
The reason given for issuing demolition orders to the families is that they have built additions onto their homes without Israeli-issued building permits. In accordance with the 1994 Oslo agreements, building permits in the town are issued by the municipality of Al-Khalil, which had issued the necessary permits to the families. However Israeli authorities maintain that permits may only be issued by the Israeli government, which has, since the Israeli occupation of the West Bank began in 1967, only issued one building permit for the town, in 1980.
Khalit Al-Dar is a small, impoverished town, and the residents are mostly laborers and farmers. When the demolition orders are carried out, approximately 60 of them will be displaced from their homes. Other demolitions have recently happened here, in both 2007 and 2009.
The pressure on the residents of Khalit Al-Dar manifests itself in other ways as well. The large water collection basin in the town remains unfinished after 15 years, as the Israeli government will not allow the construction of wells in all of the West Bank. This leaves all Palestinians at the mercy of Macarot, an Israeli water company, for their entire water supply.
A view of Khalit Al-Dar
By refusing to issue building permits, towns cannot grow, and as families grow there is less and less space to live in without building extensions to their homes.
Khalit Al-Dar is surrounded by six nearby illegal Israeli settlements, Hagai, Kyriat Arba, Carmel, Arsina, Susya, and Ma’on. Once the residents of Khalit Al-Dar are out of the way, more settlements can be built, connecting the existing ones and creating more Israeli “facts on the ground” that work to solidify the stranglehold of the occupation.
Jack English is a volunteer with International Solidarity Movement (name has been changed).
17 January 2012 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank
On Sunday, the 16th of January, at approximately 2 AM, about fifty settlers, accompanied by Israeli soldiers, entered the Abu Haikal family’s field in the neighborhood of Tel Rumeideh in Hebron. After throwing stones at the family’s house, they savagely burnt the car of Hana Haikal, fifty-three years old.
The Abu Haikal’s house is only a few meters away from a settlement from which the family are subject to constant pressure. This is the eighth car that the settlers have burned in the last five years. Five belonged to Hana, the remaining 3 to her brother. The agenda of the settlers is simply to harass the family as much as possible in order to force them away from their house and land. Their tactics include the burning of cars, verbal harassment, throwing of stones, destruction of land, and poisoning of soil to kill the family’s olive trees.
When Hana saw the car that morning she was devastated and crying. She said that since 1994, the simple act of staying in their home is a fight against the settlers, a fight that she will never give up. Unfortunately, insurance does not cover settler attacks and Hana has no more money to pay for another car.The insurance companies know that in this neighborhood there are often settler attacks and refuse to cover this type of “accident” any more.
She is demanding justice and the right to live in peace and security. But with the situation in Hebron as it is, she is left with little in the way of legal recourse.
Settlers are systematically killing Palestinian heritage, stealing land, attempting to erase their identity by poisoning the trees and attempting to make their daily life unbearable.
From this point on, Hana says she will protest until the government acts.
“She’s going to stay there, she will stay there. She will not eat, not drink until something is done,” said her brother.
A protest camp has been set up at the site of the burnt car. A group of approximately forty local Palestinian residents gathered there on the afternoon of the Monday 17th of January to express their outrage at the attacks and their solidarity with the Abu Haikal family.
A tent has been erected and Palestinian flags placed on and around the burnt car. A sign attached to the front of the car’s skeleton states: “We are here…not to upset anyone and not to make anyone happy…we are here because we are here.”
Soldiers and police arrived, apparently at the behest of a single settler who had seen the crowd gathering. In order to again protect the settlers from the peaceful gathering crowd, they took control of any area overlooking the site and barred people from leaving via the main route away from where they were.
Sarah is a volunteer with International Solidarity Movement (name has been changed).
16 January 2012 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank
The cold and rain did not keep the residents of Kufr Qaddoum from protesting this past Friday. Even the hail storm did not stop them from demanding their equal rights. The resilience and courage of the residents cannot be summed up in words. However, this is not the message they wanted to broadcast. Besides their everyday demands for justice, they wanted to express their concern for the “Judiazation of Jerusalem.” This term refers to the Israeli strategy of erasing all Palestinian and Arab identity in Jerusalem. Kufr Qaddoum residents expressed this concern by wearing traditional Arab clothing during the protest. They proudly walked around in this traditional clothing because they know the history of this land and their legitimate connection to it. Although this was a symbolic gesture for solidarity with the Palestinians from Jerusalem, culture theft is a wide spread concern for all Palestinians.
Insisting on the culture of Palestine - Click here for more images
The term the “Judiazation of Jerusalem” does not show the entire picture because Palestine as a whole is at risk of having its history censored. Israel’s strategy to legitimize its self consists of de-legitimizing Palestine. This strategy has been in place sinse the creation of Israel, and the tactics do not appear to be slowing down.
The Israeli government uses many methods, but one of the most inhumane is home demolitions. The Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions (ICAHD) has documented that 2011’s house demolition numbers have doubled from previous years. In order to “make room” for more illegal settlements, Israel is continuing the displacement of hundreds of Palestinians every year. As reported by ICAHD, 622 Palestinian structures were demolished and 60% of the displaced people are children.
The landscape itself has fallen victim to bulldozers and landscaping. Debris from destroyed villages is cleared, and trees are planted to create forests in an attempt to show the land was never populated, while its refugees still hold keys to their leveled homeland.
While the landscape is under attack, the very names of villages throughout Palestine have been turned into Hebrew. Rabbi Kahane, an American Zionist and ultra nationalist, stated that there was no such thing as an Arab village with an Arab name. “It is all Jewish,” and according to him, rightly so.
This attempt to destruct Palestine has of course targeted the culture in addition to the geography. In what appears to be a comical topic, Israel forges its way into Levantine culture by thieving falafel and hummus through its public stunts and marketing at supermarkets. From translating popular Arabic songs to Hebrew, to borrowing the culture of Arab Jews to mask a mostly European colonial pursuit, Palestinians still trace their authentic history to the land while most Israelis will eventually admit where they are from, while mechanically uttering state fed propaganda:
The indigenous, regardless of religion, have more in common with the land and its history than Zionist immigrants can attest to.
If Israel’s “Judiazation” procedures continue to target the land, the homes, and the people who are forcibly “replaced” by “the chosen inheritors of the land,” then the indigenous Palestinian, Arab culture will be replaced with manufactured Israeli culture.
These are the reasons why Kufr Qaddoum residents and other Palestinians resist; for their existence. Yet, when American politicians state that Palestinians are “invented,” it goes to show just how essential it is for those in solidarity with Palestine to showcase what is actually occurring on the ground: that it is Israel itself who has manufactured itself.
It is becoming more and more obvious as insecure, violent settlers showcase the nature of colonialism, with the self righteous, pompous attitude of gun holders. No Palestinian would deface the land just to prove a point. Historical truth does not change, regardless of the millions of maps and books Israel and America author. As Edward Said stated, “It is quite common to hear high officials in Washington and elsewhere speak of changing the map of the Middle East, as if ancient societies and myriad peoples can be shaken up like so many peanuts in a jar.”
Amal is a volunteer with International Solidarity Movement (name has been changed).
“Madleen refuses to sleep by herself; she will only sleep in her parent’s room” says Nujoud, “she’s afraid to be by herself at all. The other day we were in the garden and I asked her to go to the bedroom to bring something. She refused to go without me.”
Sabri with his mother Nujoud Al Ashqar (Photo: Palestinian Centre for Human Rights)
On 17 January 2009, at approximately 05:30, the area surrounding the UNRWA school in Beit Lahiya came under attack from Israeli forces. The area was bombarded using both high explosive, and white phosphorous artillery; white phosphorous is an incendiary chemical which ignites on contact with oxygen, its use in civilian populated areas violates the principle of distinction, and the prohibition of indiscriminate attacks. Nujoud Al Ashqar, along with approximately 1,600 others, was taking shelter in the school at the time of the attack. Nujoud sustained severe head injuries as a result of the bombing, and also losing her right hand. Two of her sons Bilal, 6, and Muhammed, 4, were killed in the attack.
When PCHR first spoke to Nujoud in the aftermath of the attack three years ago, her life had become extremely difficult, particularly her relationship with her husband, Mohammed. “At first my husband blamed me for the death of the boys. He used to threaten me every day that he would re-marry” says Nujoud, “but things have got better between us since the birth of our daughter Haneen. He loves her deeply and she loves him.”
Nujoud’s daughter Haneen, 1, was both a blessing and a severe challenge for Nujoud, who, despite being thankful she was able to give birth to another child after the loss of Muhammed and Bilal, is faced with extreme difficulties caring for herself, the household and her children given the loss of her arm and other medical difficulties following the attack. “I get most frustrated when trying to care for Haneen” says Nujoud, “I need help form my daughter Madleen all the time to care for her. I always feel sad for her because she sacrifices so much of her education to care for the house and her sister. But I need her to do it” says Nujoud. “Her grades in school have suffered as a result. It’s made worse by the fact I find myself with no patience to help her with her school work anymore since the attack.”
Madleen was herself in the UNRWA school at the time of the attack and faces difficulties with both the memory of that day and the loss of Bilal and Muhammed. “Madleen refuses to sleep by herself; she will only sleep in her parent’s room,” says Nujoud, “she’s afraid to be by herself at all. The other day we were in the garden and I asked her to go to the bedroom to bring something. She refused to go without me.”
Nujoud shares Madleen’s fear of the past and apprehension of the future. “Sometimes when there are rumours of a new war or Israeli incursions Madleen will start asking me about it and speaking of the incident. But I can’t bear to talk with her about what happened and I just ask her not to talk about it.”. The memory of the attack remains so moving for Nujoud that she does not speak with it to anybody. “Sometimes visitors will come over and ask to hear about that night. I don’t talk to them about it though. If I do I will spend the rest of the day and the whole night going over it in my head.”
Apart from the loss of one hand Nujoud has been left with severe pain in her head. When PCHR spoke to her three years ago she would wear her head scarf everywhere, including inside the house, as she had lost all her hair due to severe burns. “Now most of my hair has grown back” says Nujoud, “except for small patches due to injuries, but still when Madleen combs my hair I’m in agony.”
The loss of Bilal and Muhammed is especially painful for Nujoud. “I could never forget my children. If I stayed alive for 200,000 years I would not forget them.” Bilal and Muhammed were always a huge pillar of stability and support in Nujoud’s life. “When I used to get angry with my husband I would want to leave the house and go to my family. Bilal and Muhammed would calm me down and get me to stay. Now, when my husband and I argue, I just go to my room and think of them.” For Nujoud’s husband, Muhammed, who is deaf and dumb, the loss of Bilal, who used to help him communicate with others outside the house, was also devastating.
With another child on the way, Nujoud is hopeful for her health and for another baby boy in the future, who she also plans to call Bilal. “Me and my husband had been waiting for Bilal, he was so dear to our hearts, I hope to have a son so I can name him after his brother.”
PCHR submitted a criminal complaint to the Israeli authorities on behalf of the Al Ashqar family on 18 May 2012. PCHR have received an interlocutory response noting receipt of the original complaint. To date, however, and despite repeated requests, no further information has been communicated to PCHR, regarding the status of any investigation, and so on.
“Can I go to a court to restore my sons? No” says Mohammed. “What is the point in bringing the soldiers who killed my sons to justice when there will simply be more and more after them? When others will lose their sons as well? Soldiers commit these crimes because they know they have immunity.”
Mohammed Shurrab (Photo: Palestinian Centre for Human Rights)
On 16 January 2009, Israeli forces positioned in the al Fukhari area, south east of Khan Younis, opened fire on the vehicle of Mohammed Shurrab and his two sons Kassab, 28, and Ibrahim, 18, as they were travelling back to their home during the Israeli-declared ceasefire period. Mohammed was injured and crashed the car, his two sons were subsequently shot as they left the car. Israeli soldiers refused to allow medical access to the area, and Kassab and Ibrahim bled to death on the scene over a number of hours. There were no military operations in the area at the time.
For Mohammed Shurrab (67), life since the death of his sons has been a contact battle to fight back the memories of the day. “I try to keep busy in every moment. I read 4-5 hours every day. These books you see on my wall have all been read 2-3 times each. The rest of my time I work on my farm, tend to my crops and care for my live stock”, says Mohammed, pointing to the two new born sheep that arrived only two hours beforehand. Despite his best efforts to distract himself, however, Mohammed seems resigned to a life of remembering. “Until I get buried bellow the soil I will continue to suffer, agonising over my sons.”
Mohammed is adamant that he hopes that time will come sooner rather than later, “everyday I hope to join my sons. The only question is how I do so. I am a religious man and believe in God, taking my own life would be against my beliefs, but I believe it’s better for me to join my sons. I am waiting to die.”
His farm, which is on the edge of the Israeli imposed buffer zone along the Gaza – Israeli border, is a hideout from the sights, sounds and issues that bring memories of his sons back to him. “I left my wife and my daughters to come here and live in peace. My wife is very sick. If she is reminded of the incident she will start to scream like she is not human, she cannot breath, she sometimes losses consciousness. I cannot bear to be around her when she is like that.”
Despite his best efforts to escape, however, Mohammed is reminded by the smallest detail. “This time of year is the hardest. Everything reminds me of that day. The crisp air, the crops that grow, the dark; everything about this time of year takes me back to the incident.” Much like the parents of many others who lost their lives during the Israeli onslaught, Mohammed finds it especially painful to be around those who are around the same age as his sons. “I was at the wedding of my young cousin recently. He is the same age as Ibrahim would have been if he was still alive. I couldn’t stop thinking of all the things that he could have done with his life if it wasn’t taken from him; education, marriage, children, now he can do none of this.”
Muhammad has suffered both mentally and physically as a result of stress and physical injuries incurred due to the shooting. Shuffling slowly and carefully around his farm house home, his physical symptoms are obvious. “I had severe damage to my neural system as a result of the attack,” says Mohammed, “my balance is now destroyed.” Lifting his top to show the long scar running down his back where he had surgery to repair his injuries Muhammad says his ability to fight infection and illness has deteriorated since the attack. The stress he feels as a result of his experience has left him unable to sleep and he is forced to take sleeping pills to steal a brief 4 to 5 hours of sleep every night before waking very early in the morning.
Soon, Mohammed’s remaining sons and daughters will be fully educated and independent. Mohammed says when that time comes his work is done and there is nothing left keeping him from the afterlife. “The moment my children say we need for nothing, that’s it, I have done everything I am responsible for, I can go,” says Mohammed. “The good times have gone, they will not be back. I hope for nothing”. When asked what his greatest fear for the future is, Mohammed replies; “my fear is a future.”
Regarding the pursuit of justice within Israeli courts Mohammed is scornful. “Absolutely not; the soldier who killed my sons did not act in a vacuum. He had permission from his superiors. What is more their crimes are ongoing. Stories like mine are not isolated incidences.” Any redress in Israeli courts, for Mohammed, were it forthcoming, would be irrelevant in any case. “Can I go to a court to restore my sons? No” says Mohammed. “What is the point in bringing the soldiers who killed my sons to justice when there will simply be more and more after them? When others will lose their sons as well? Soldiers commit these crimes because they know they have immunity.”
PCHR submitted a criminal complaint to the Israeli authorities on behalf of the Shurrab family on 19 August 2009. To-date, no response has been received.
