On February 26th, one youth was killed and two seriously injured when a landmine, leftover from Israeli military training in the area, exploded near the town of Tubas in the northern West Bank.
The landmine exploded around 3pm, as the three boys were walking home from school in the fields east of Tubas. Fifteen-year-old Jamal Abdel Nasser Al-Fuqaha was killed in the blast, and 16-year-old Mohammed Khalil Al-Fuqaha and his 17-year-old cousin Munir Khalil Al-Fuqaha, were injured and taken to Rafidia Hospital in Nablus. Munir who received shrapnel wounds to his head, face, chest, right buttock and left leg, and Mohamed who suffered severe psychological damage as a result of the blast, but no physical injuries.
Al-Fuqaha family
Jamal Abdel Nasser Al-Fuqaha was killed by an explosive device leftover by Israeli forces
The fields east of Tubas are often used by the Israeli military for training exercises. According to the Palestine News Network, dozens of Palestinians have been injured from landmines left behind by the army in the Tubas region.
On Friday, February 27, residents of the village of Jayous conducted their weekly demonstration despite a torrential downpour. The marchers reached the last intersection before the south gate of the Apartheid Fence carrying Palestinian flags and chanting. They then dispersed to find shelter from the rain.
Despite the kidnapping of dozens of youths the previous week by the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) and the continued detention of about 15 of them, roughly two dozen approached the gate and began throwing rocks at the Israeli jeeps stationed on the far side.
Unlike some weeks, the youths did not build barricades in the roadway leading into the village. Military jeeps entered the village via that roadway a few minutes later and soldiers gave chase to the fleeing young men. Maher Mohammed Fazi Shamasna was arrested in the immediate vicinity of his home, despite no indications that he had been involved in the stone throwing. His mother stated that he had gone outside to feed the family’s chickens when he was abducted by the soldiers who had not yet been able to capture any of their antagonists.
Maher was placed in a military jeep before any international or Israeli activists could respond to the situation. Soldiers near the jeep threw sound bombs at nearby people. His mother and female relatives pleaded with the soldiers to release Maher and activists who had arrived attempted to question the soldiers as to the reason for the arrest. The Israeli soldiers and border police refused to answer any questions and threatened the international and Israeli activists with arrest. They demanded that no photos or video footage be taken and demanded ID’s from the activists, all of whom refused to produce them for the soldiers.
All of the activists consented to go inside one of the Palestinian homes at the request of the mother of the kidnapped youth, who was attempting to negotiate the release of her son. The jeep carrying Maher had already exited the south gate and returned without the prisoner. The IOF then imposed a curfew on the village and showed a closed military zone order which had been apparently produced in advance of the demonstration. They remained in the village until dark. International activists who left homes in defiance of the curfew were threatened with shooting by the soldiers occupying a rooftop and another group was threatened with immediate arrest if seen on the streets again.
To date, Maher Shanasna is still in custody and is reported to have been transferred to the Huwarra detention center where he may be held for an indefinite period without legal representation or contact with family members.
In the early hours on February 24th, Israeli Forces invaded the villages of Sa’ir and Idhna, in the Hebron district of the southern West Bank, and arrested four men. More than ten jeeps entered Idhna at approximately 12:30am. Around 40 soldiers surrounded the house of Hatem Mahmoud Al-Kharuf, and ordered all the family members outside. They then proceeded to search the house, turning everything upside down and smashing a bedroom wardrobe. A shared Taxi (service) owned by Hatem’s brother that was parked outside was also ransacked, with the soldiers tearing off large pieces of the interior and inexplicably breaking open the airbags. The taxi was just recently bought, and the total cost of the damages exceeds $2,800 USD.
Soldiers then arrested Hatem Al-Kharuf, a 37-year-old retired UN schoolteacher. Hatem was handcuffed, blindfolded, and taken away in an army jeep. He is currently being held in Gush Etzion on unknown charges. Israeli Forces withdrew from Idhna at 3:00am.
Around 20 jeeps of soldiers also invaded Sa’ir village at 6:00am. The army fired live ammunition in the streets and ransacked at least three houses. Three residents of Sa’ir were arrested, including Mohammad Mahmoud Jaradet, a 28-year-old construction worker. The soldiers told Mohammad that they were looking for his brother. When they could not find him, they arbitrarily arrested Mohammad in his place.
Additionally, for the past week Israeli forces have been entering Beit Ommar in the northern Hebron District daily, firing indiscriminately in the streets for hours at a time. One young man was shot one week ago in the leg with live ammunition. He was taken to hospital in Ramallah where he remains because of serious complications.
— VICTORY!! —
Cardiff Students Against War is ENDING OUR OCCUPATION of the Large Shandon lecture theatre, Cardiff University Main Building! We’re about to leave, march around campus to declare our victory, and make our continued presence known to the university community. Banners and megaphones, BOOKS not BOMBS!
Following the open letter to Vice Chancellor David Grant, the BOOKS not BOMBS demonstration outside the Student Union and the subsequent occupation of the Large Shandon, Cardiff University has divested all shares from BAe Systems and the aerospace arm of General Electric! They have instructed their external fund managers to avoid future investments in the arms trade, and have promised to raise the issue of an ethical investment policy at the next Council Meeting on May 18th. They are also willing to discuss the provision of surplus computers and resources to institutions in Gaza.
The victory comes after three days of occupation which has been inundated with messages of support from all over the country, as well as further afield. This has included university staff, students and societies, local Plaid Cymru politicians and groups, activist groups such as CND Cymu, No Borders South Wales and South Wales Anarchists, and has had extensive press coverage, from the local papers and student publications to Indymedia and the BBC. We are extremely proud to have received a message of solidarity from Noam Chomsky!
Cardiff University occupation
Cardiff University occupation
We see this as the beginning, not the end. The occupation has attracted considerable interest and support from the Cardiff University community, and has succeeded in raising awareness of the effects of the arms trade and the horrific situation in Gaza. Cardiff Students Against War will continue to campaign on these issues, and to make sure that the university doesn’t go back on its promises.
So well done to everyone who has been involved!!
But it’s not over yet. The campaign will continue because we believe that Cardiff University should be doing more for Gaza, such as facilitating scholarships to Gazan students and boycotting Israeli products in protest at the treatment of Palestinians by the IDF, and the settlers occupying the West Bank.
Both Israel and Hamas used weapons supplied from abroad to carry out attacks on civilians, Amnesty International said today as it released fresh evidence on the munitions used during the three-week conflict in Gaza and southern Israel and called on the UN to impose a comprehensive arms embargo.
“Israeli forces used white phosphorus and other weapons supplied by the USA to carry out serious violations of international humanitarian law, including war crimes. Their attacks resulted in the death of hundreds of children and other civilians and massive destruction of homes and infrastructure,” said Donatella Rovera who headed Amnesty International’s fact-finding mission to southern Israel and Gaza. “At the same time, Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups fired hundreds of rockets that had been smuggled in or made of components from abroad at civilian areas in Israel. Though far less lethal than the weaponry used by Israel, such rocket firing also constitutes a war crime and caused several civilian deaths.”
Even before the three-week conflict, those who armed the two sides will have been aware of the pattern of repeated misuse of weapons by the parties. They must take some responsibility for the violations perpetrated with the weapons they have supplied and should immediately cease further transfers.
“As the major supplier of weapons to Israel, the USA has a particular obligation to stop any supply that contributes to gross violations of the laws of war and of human rights. The Obama Administration should immediately suspend US military aid to Israel,” said Malcolm Smart, Director for the Middle East.
For many years the USA has been the major supplier of conventional arms to Israel. Under a 10-year agreement to 2017, the USA is due to provide $30 billion in military aid to Israel, a 25 percent increase compared to the period preceding the Bush administration.
“To a large extent, Israel’s military offensive in Gaza was carried out with weapons, munitions and military equipment supplied by the USA and paid for with US taxpayers’ money,” said Malcolm Smart.
In Gaza, as the fighting ended Amnesty International researchers found fragments and components from munitions used by the Israeli Army – including many that are US-made – littering school playgrounds, in hospitals and in people’s homes. They included artillery and tank shells, mortar fins and remnants from Hellfire and other airborne missiles and large F-16 delivered bombs, as well as still smouldering highly incendiary white phosphorus remains.
They also found remnants of a new type of missile, seemingly launched from unmanned drones, which explodes large numbers of tiny sharp-edged metal cubes, each between 2mm and 4mm square in size. These lethal purpose-made shrapnel had penetrated thick metal doors and were embedded deep in concrete walls, and are clearly designed to maximize injury.
In southern Israel, Amnesty International also saw the remains of “Qassam”, Grad, and other indiscriminate rockets fired by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups against civilian areas. These unsophisticated weapons are either smuggled into Gaza clandestinely or constructed there from components secretly brought in from abroad. They cannot be aimed accurately and stand no comparison with the weaponry deployed by Israel but they have caused several deaths of Israeli civilians, injured others and damage to civilian property.
“We urge the UN Security Council to impose an immediate and comprehensive arms embargo on Israel, Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups until effective mechanisms are found to ensure that munitions and other military equipment are not used to commit serious violations of international law,” said Malcolm Smart. “In addition all states should suspend all transfers of military equipment, assistance and munitions to Israel, Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups until there is no longer a substantial risk of human rights violations. There must be no return to business as usual, with the predictably devastating consequences for civilians in Gaza and Israel.”
