17th July 2013 | International Solidarity Movement, Ramallah Team | Nabi Saleh, Occupied Palestine
Update 21th July: Mahmoud Tamimi was released from hospital and needs to stay at home to complete his recovery.
Update 19th July:Mahmoud Tamimi is still recovering at the hospital. The injury in his leg is still open due to artery bleeding and will require stitches today.
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On Tuesday, clashes between residents of Nabi Saleh and Israeli forces resulted in one boy injured with a rubber coated steel bullet in the leg and a man injured with live ammunition, also in the leg. The latter underwent surgery and is still recovering at Ramallah hospital.
Mahmoud Tamimi being carried away after he was shot (Photo by Tamimi Press)
Yesterday in the evening, just before Iftar (breaking of the fast), confrontations between Israeli forces and Palestinian youths from Nabi Saleh erupted. Israeli forces shot tear gas canisters, rubber coated steel bullets and live ammunition at villagers, resulting in two people injured.
Mahmoud Tamimi, 22 years old, was shot with a live ammunition bullet in the leg when he was trying to help Mohammad Tamimi, 10 years old, who had been shot with a rubber coated steel bullet in the leg while standing on the hill side where the confrontations were taking place.
After he was shot, Israeli soldiers prevented villagers from aiding Mahmoud and evacuating him to hospital. Bilal Tamimi, a villager who went to the scene to document what was happening, was beaten up and had his camera broken by Israeli soldiers.
Mohammad and Mahmoud were eventually taken to Ramallah hospital. Mahmoud underwent surgery and is still at the hospital while Mohammad was released yesterday and is currently recovering at home.
The village of Nabi Saleh has been demonstrating against the theft of their natural spring and the occupation since December 2009. Israeli forces violently suppress the weekly Friday protests by shooting tear gas canisters, skunk water, sound bombs, rubber coated steel bullets and even live ammunition at protesters. Two people have been killed, Mustafa and Rushdi Tamimi, and many others severely injured. Bassem Tamimi, Mohammad’s father, has spent 17 months in Israeli jails, merely for being a prominent activist at the protests. Nariman Tamimi, his wife and Mohammad’s mother, was arrested at a demonstration on the 28th of June. She spent three days in jail and was accused of entering a closed military zone. Nariman is currently on partial house arrest on Fridays and has the next military court hearing in September.
Israeli soldiers preventing people from aiding Mahmoud Tamimi after he was shot (Photo by Tamimi Press)Mahmoud Tamimi receiving medical aid before being evacuated by ambulance (Photo by Tamimi Press)
19th July 2013 | International Solidarity Movement, Ramallah Team | Nabi Saleh, Occupied Palestine
Today, around fifty Palestinians together with Israeli and international activists marched from the centre of Nabi Saleh down the main road towards the stolen spring.
Protesters made barricades of burning tyres to prevent Israeli forces from raiding the village.
Soon after that, several Israeli border police officers appeared behind a house on the right side of the main road and started shooting rubber coated steel bullets at protesters.
More Israeli border police then arrived at the bottom of the main road, running towards protesters and shooting more rubber coated steel bullets.
An Israeli woman activist was shot in her upper thigh with a rubber coated steel bullet from close range and had to be taken to hospital in Tel Aviv. She underwent a very minor surgery to get the bullet removed and will remain in hospital until Sunday.
Israeli forces continued shooting rubber coated steel bullets and tear gas canisters from various locations inside the village.
According to a resident of Nabi Saleh, yesterday night at around 3am, an Israeli bulldozer was working in the spring. Settlers from Halamish also went to the spring to talk to the soldiers. Palestinian youths went to the hilltop in front of this area to see what was happening and verbal confrontations between settlers and them erupted. Israeli forces, defending the settlers as usual, shot several tear gas canisters at Palestinians.
Previously this week, on Tuesday, clashes between residents of Nabi Saleh and Israeli forces erupted in the same spot where Rushdi Tamimi was shot last November. Israeli forces shot rubber coated steel bullets and injured Mohammed Tamimi (10) in the leg. Mahmoud Tamimi (22) was then shot with live ammunition also in the leg. Read the full report here.
7th July 2013 | International Solidarity Movement, Ramallah Team | Nabi Saleh, Occupied Palestine
The weekly protest in the village of Nabi Saleh was, as usual, met with extreme violence by Israeli forces. Tear gas canisters, rubbers coated steel bullets and skunk water were shot at unarmed protesters.
After midday prayers, over fifty Palestinians together with international and Israeli activists met in the centre of the village to march down the main road. As demonstrators walked passed the gas station, several Border police officers approached them from the hill located to the right of the road and shot several rounds of rubber coated steel bullets. When the march dispersed, the skunk water truck drove forward spraying people and homes.
The protest continued for an hour and a half during which Israeli border police were shooting demonstrators with tear gas canisters, rubber coated steel bullets and skunk water at close range.
Unlike every other Friday, Nariman Tamimi, a prominent activist from Nabi Saleh, was not able to attend the demonstration as she was in a partial house arrest. Nariman and Rana Nazzal were arrested at last week’s protest and spent three days in jail. They are accused of entering a closed military zone and had to pay 2750NIS each on bail in order to be released. The prosecution is asking for one week under house arrest. They are currently awaiting the judge’s decision.
4th July 2013 | International Solidarity Movement, Ramallah Team | Ramallah, Occupied Palestine
On the 28th of June 2013 two Palestinian activists were arrested in the village of Nabi Saleh during the village’s Friday demonstration. Both are currently released on bail and have been charged with entering a close military zone. The prosecutor is asking for house arrest and they are awaiting the judge’s decision. Nariman Tamimi is a prominent activist from the village of Nabi Saleh and Rana Nazzal is a Palestinian Canadian activist. The International Solidarity Movement had a chance to speak to Rana about her experiences during the arrest, the time following imprisonment and the situation for political prisoners in Palestine.
International Solidarity Movement: You, together with Nariman Tamimi, were arrested last Friday during a protest against the Israel occupation in Nabi Saleh, can you tell us in which specific context you were arrested and where did they take you afterwards?
Rana Nazzal: We attempted to reach Nabi Saleh’s water spring, which has been annexed by the nearby illegal Israeli settlement. A line of Israeli soldiers blocked our way and threatened to arrest us so we turned around and began climbing the hill back to the village. As we retreated, a different group of soldiers ran towards us and began arresting us. When I asked why we were being arrested, the soldier replied, “because I feel like it”.
Myself, Nariman, and a Spanish man were taken together. We were kept handcuffed and blindfolded for nine hours, most of the time isolated from each other. Within this time we were not told the reason of our arrest, received no food, and were transported to two military bases before we were finally taken to the police station.
There, Nariman and I were taken in a police car, handcuffed, and driven around with two male soldiers for over 7 hours before reaching Hasharon prison at 7.30 am.
ISM: There are sixteen Palestinian women currently imprisoned by Israel, all of whom are held in Hasharon – how was the encounter with these women prisoners? How did you spend your time in jail?
R.N: They didn’t keep us in the same prison ward as the sixteen other women, but we saw them in passing moments. On Saturday, we saw them while the longest term prisoner, Lina Jarboni, was giving Hebrew lessons. Lina told us that Sireen Khudiri, the recent 21 year-old who was arrested on charges of ‘internet activism’, also gives the women English lessons. On Sunday night Lina cooked the Palestinian stew mloukhieh and sent a huge platter to our room, along with changes of clothes so we could finally change. The women were generous and strong spirited.
We spent most of our time talking or sleeping, as we weren’t allowed books, paper, radio, or any form of entertainment.
On Monday we were woken at 2am and taken on a grueling trip to the Ofer military courts, along with Tahrir Mansour who also had a trial. Tahrir and I were locked in a compartment on a bus that could hardly fit the two of us sitting upright, with our ankles and hands cuffed.
After spending the day in a cell at Ofer and attending a trial in the afternoon, Nariman and I were finally released after 10 pm.
ISM: After the military court decided that you should be released, you had to pay 2000NIS in bail and were charged with entering a “close military zone”, can you tell us more about the on-going process? What is the prosecutor asking for?
R.N: The trial is still going on, we have been to court three times so far this week. The prosecutor asked for jail time or a very high bail (at one point asking judge for 10,000 NIS!), they also asked the judge to make me postpone my travel time (as I am going to Canada soon for university). All these requests were turned down, but on Tuesday the judge asked for 750NIS bail and house arrest for one week. Our lawyer appealed the house arrest, and the prosecution appealed the bail (wanting a higher amount). The decision of Wednesday’s appeal trial has not been told to us yet.
ISM: Is this the first time you have been arrested and imprisoned? If not, can you tell us about your previous experiences?
R.N: Last year I had a similar imprisonment. It was much more difficult because it was my first time and I was alone and mostly kept in isolation for a period of five days. I had been beaten by soldiers during the arrest, with bruises and cuts all over my body. I was also facing more serious charges. I was charged, among other minor things, with assaulting a soldier, but thankfully we had video evidence that proved that it was not the case. Nonetheless, the court demanded I pay a similar bail last year.
ISM: Why do you attend these demonstrations and why do you think it is important as a Palestinian and a woman to participate in those protests?
R.N: The people of Nabi Saleh protest out of a direct necessity to protect what is left of their land and reclaim what has been illegally stolen from them. I, as a Palestinian, can’t separate myself from their struggle, so whenever I have the chance to, I am happy to join them. I especially like Nabi Saleh because the women play a role in the leadership.
ISM: Do you think it is important to have international presence at those demonstrations? If so, why?
R.N: I think an international observer presence can be helpful, in particular for publishing news in English in cases where that is not already happening. I think it is important for the popular struggle to not be reliant on internationals, however, as their legal status in the country is very weak (for example, they can be deported easily if they participate directly in protests) and their presence is transient. Visible internationals may lessen the violence that is used against protesters, but Palestinian women, and large numbers of protesters in general, have a similar effect. I think it would be better in the long term if we were encouraging Palestinians to come from the nearby cities, and especially women.
ISM: Do you want to add anything else?
R.N: No matter how much I had read or written about the prisoners’ struggle before my first imprisonment, I did not fully realize its significance. Every second in solitary confinement, every minute of exhaustion and boredom, and every day away from one’s family is significant to the prisoners. We on the outside should begin to feel every second as they do and begin pushing their cause with the urgency it deserves. I call for the freedom of all Palestinian political prisoners.
28th June 2013 | International Solidarity Movement, Ramallah Team | Nabi Saleh, Occupied Palestine
Update 10th July: The military judge decided on house arrest for Nariman Tamimi. She will have to stay at home every Friday until the next court hearing in September. Rana is not allowed to go to Nabi Saleh at least until her next hearing next week. Both are charged with entering a closed military zone. Rana is also accused of interfering with a soldier.
Update 8th July: The judge’s decision was partial house arrest for last Friday only. Tomorrow they are having the final hearing before the case is closed.
Update 3rd July: Rana and Nariman are still waiting for the judge decision on the appeal. They had to paid 750NIS more for bail.
Update 2nd July: The military judge decided on house arrest for Nariman and Rana. The defense has appealed and is still waiting for a decision.
Update 1st July:Both Palestinian activists have been released on bail (2000NIS each) from Ofer military prison. They are being charged with entering a “close military zone” and have a trial on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Update 30th June 3:30pm:Both Palestinian activists were released by the court; however the Israeli Police appealed the decision which means they are to be held another night, this time in Ofer Prison.
Update 29th June 2:15pm:Both Palestinian activists have a court date set in Ofer military court tomorrow.
Update 29th June 1:00pm: The two Palestinian activists are now currently being held at HaSharon Prison.
Update 29th June 09:00am: The two Palestinian activists are currently being held at Jalameh prison. They may or may not have court on Sunday but will not be released before then.
Update 29th June 2am: The international activist arrested at the protest was released last night.
Update 29th June 00.45am:The two Palestinian activists are currently being interrogated at Giva Binyamin police station.
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During the June 28th demonstration in Nabi Salih, after Friday prayer had finished, the Palestinians once again began their resistance against the illegal Israeli occupation. As usual, their demonstration was met with high levels of violence; disproportionate teargas was fired and foul smelling skunk water was shot onto homes. Two Palestinians and one international were arrested. They are currently being held in Binyamin police station.
At around 1:30 pm demonstrators began marching towards the stolen water spring of Nabi Salih, currently occupied by Israeli settlers from the nearby illegal settlement of Halamish. As soon as the demonstrators began to descend the mountain, two military jeeps began using their tempest tear gas attachments, firing excessive tear gas canisters directly at unarmed marchers. The military jeeps then began to aim directly at those who chose to stay on the road, shooting canisters at head height and disregarding the flammable nature of the local petrol station. The skunk truck and two jeeps then invaded the centre of the village, including the olive groves [as seen in video] which then allowed the skunk truck to maneuver freely, shooting at all homes and demonstrators in its wake.
After this, those demonstrators that had reached the bottom of the mountain close to the spring were faced with a large group of soldiers. Demonstrators confronted the soldiers; however as the video shows, the soldiers disregarded the rights the Palestinians have to their land and proceeded to aim their weaponry at demonstrators. Two Palestinian women, including prominent Nabi Saleh activist Nariman Tamimi, and one international man, believed to be from Spain, were arrested for no reason other than resisting the occupation. It is currently understood that these three have been transferred to Giva Binyamin police station, where they are still currently being held.
The village of Nabi Salih has been demonstrating against the theft of the natural spring and the occupation since December 2009. Israeli forces violently suppress the weekly Friday protests by shooting tear gas canisters, skunk water, sound bombs, rubber coated steel bullets and even live ammunition at protesters. Two people have been killed, Mustafa and Rushdi Tamimi, and many others severely injured. Resident Bassem Tamimi, has spent 17 months in Israeli jails, merely for being a prominent activist at the protests. After more than three years and despite the repression, Nabi Saleh continues to fight against the injustices of a brutal military Israeli occupation.
